Israel’s Ambassador to the US, Gilad Erdan, on Tuesday blasted Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) after she compared Israel to Afghanistan and the Taliban.
Omar had shared a video to Twitter of a conversation she had with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in which she asked Blinken what mechanisms are in place in the US for victims of alleged crimes against humanity in Israel, “Palestine”, and Afghanistan to seek justice.
“We must have the same level of accountability and justice for all victims of crimes against humanity. We have seen unthinkable atrocities committed by the US, Hamas, Israel, Afghanistan, and the Taliban,” wrote Omar.
“I asked Secretary Blinken where people are supposed to go for justice,” she added.
Erdan later retweeted Omar’s video and wrote, “How can a member of Congress compare Israel and the US - two vibrant democracies with robust legal systems and militaries that strive to avoid civilian casualties - with jihadi terrorists who purposely murder civilians? The difference should be clear to everyone.”
Last month, Omar called Israel's retaliations for Gazan rocket fire on civilians an "act of terrorism," but failed to condemn the rockets themselves, or Hamas' use of Gazan civilians as human shields.
Omar is notorious for her past controversial statements on Israel. She came under fire in 2019 after she suggested on Twitter that Republicans were attacking her at the behest of the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC.
She subsequently issued a half-hearted apology before ultimately deleting the controversial tweets.
Later, Omar called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's "existence" a problem in an interview with CBS.
In 2019, Israel announced it would bar entry to Omar and fellow Muslim congresswoman Rashida Tlaib over their support for BDS.