US President Donald Trump told advisers that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu should ban Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) from entering Israel through its anti-BDS laws, an Axios report said on Saturday night.
Trump said that if Omar and Tlaib want to boycott Israel, "then Israel should boycott them."
Trump said he disagreed with Israeli Ambassador Ron Dermer's explanation of why Israel is allowing Omar and Tlaib in. "Out of respect for the US Congress and the great alliance between Israel and America, we would not deny entry to any member of Congress into Israel," Dermer said last month.
Israeli leaders say that Democratic politicians pressured Dermer into allowing the two congresswomen into Israel and said that if Israel didn't allow them in, other Democratic politicians would cancel a planned, AIPAC-sponsored Israel trip in solidarity,
According to Axios, Israeli leaders are aware of Trump's view on the issue but White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham denied that Trump told the Israelis what to do. "The Israeli government can do what they want. It's fake news," Grisham said on Saturday.
Omar announced last month that she will be visiting Israel and the Palestinian Authority and would be accompanied by Tlaib. Their visit is scheduled for August 18.
Israel could have prevented their entry in light of a 2017 law which allows Israeli officials to ban supporters of the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Before the announcement of their visit to Israel, Omar and Tlaib introduced a pro-BDS resolution in the US House of Representatives.