Bushfire
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The American Jewish Committee (AJC) has denounced a tweet by US Representative Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) that falsely accuses Israel of being an “apartheid state” and “stealing Palestinian homes and burning their lands” that refers to a retracted tweet by B’Tselem that alleged Israelis had set fire to Palestinian Arab fields in Samaria.

“.@RashidaTlaib, you shared a falsehood about Israeli Jews setting fire to Palestinian fields. This ugly claim has been retracted,” AJC tweeted. “You're a member of Congress. Take down your tweet. Or is it okay to perpetuate untruths when they fit your policy agenda?”

Tlaib on Wednesday retweeted an article about a series of fires near the Palestinian Arab village of Burin, which used a now discredited May 4 tweet by Jerusalem-based left wing NGO B’Tselem, along with Arab media sources, which claimed that a photo of a serious fire near Burin was started by Israeli “settlers.”

“We cannot stand by and watch this happen. @SecBlinken, billions of U.S. taxpayers dollars support Netanyahu’s government and this racist violence. We must condemn this swiftly,” Tlaib tweeted.

After media reports showed that the fires were actually started by Palestinian Arabs, B’Tselem retracted its claim, stating “The fires in Burin tonight are being re-examined. I will update with any new information I have,” reported the Jerusalem Post. The Samaria Regional Council plans to sue B’Tselem for slander for its allegation that Jews in the area were responsible for the fires in the fields.