Ilhan Omar Accused of Smearing Journalist Who Criticized Terrorist Soleimani
Masih Alinejad says Democratic Minnesota Rep is campaigning against her
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Iranian journalist and author Masih Alinejad accused Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar of being a part of a smear campaign against her after she criticized the now-deceased leader of Iran’s elite Quds Force, Gen. Qasem Soleimani.
Writing in an op-ed for the Washington Post, Alinejad criticized Soleimani claiming that many Iranians viewed him as a war criminal and warmonger, rather than a celebrated leader many left-leaning news outlets are reporting.
Alinejad told Fox News host Martha MacCallum on Friday that Omar had joined those attacking her.
“So why is she coming after you?” MacCallum asked.
Alinejad responded by saying she believed the attacks were in response to her article:
“I criticized Soleimani, and I’ve said that many Iranians do not see him as a hero," she said.
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"They see him as a warmonger, as a war criminal. And that is why I got a lot of attacks by these Islamist lobbyists, and she actually shared one of these defamatory articles against me.”
Alinejad added that she attempted to reach out to freshman congresswoman on a number of occasions, repeatedly asking her to lend her voice to different situations.
“One time, six women got arrested just because of protesting compulsory hijab," Alinejad said.
"Another time, 29 women in Iran got arrested in one day because of protesting compulsory hijab, and I asked Omar to join us and show solidarity. She was silent,” she added.
“And another time when my brother was taken hostage by the Revolutionary Guard, I reach out to her. Silence again," she continued.
"My mother was interrogated for three hours just because of my activities. Again, she was silent. One thousand five hundred people got killed; she was silent. Right now, 176 people got killed in a suspicious situation in Iran, Ukrainian airplane — she’s silent!”
BREAKING: Iran admits it shot down Ukrainian airliner killing 176
— Neon Nettle (@NeonNettle) January 11, 2020
READ MORE: https://t.co/FZeTpiQ4M5
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MacCallum asked Alinejad whether she believed Omar was actually siding with the regime.
“Are you suggesting that she doesn’t care about the freedom that you are fighting for?”
“What I want to say is this: She broke her silence when I criticized the Islamic Republic,” Alinejad explained.
“I criticized President Trump in Washington Post about travel bans, separated me from my son in the U.K," she said.
"I haven’t seen my son for two years. Why didn’t she attack me when I criticized President Trump? … But as soon I criticized the criminals of the Islamic Republic, and I called them warmongers and call them terrorists, called them religious dictatorship, then the Islamic lobbyists here they attack us.”
On Friday, Omar was asked to explain her support for the anti-Israel Boycott, Divest, and Sanction (BDS) movement while opposing U.S. sanctions on Iran, claiming they are "very different."
The congresswoman blasted Trump's decision on additional sanction on Iran:
"This makes no sense. Sanctions are economic warfare," the congresswoman reacted on Twitter.
"They have already caused medical shortages and countless deaths in Iran."
