Ilhan Omar slams '$3.8 billion US military aid' to Israel amid Sheikh Jarrah evictions

Ilhan Omar slams '$3.8 billion US military aid' to Israel amid Sheikh Jarrah evictions
Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar criticised the US for its military aid to Israel.
2 min read
06 May, 2021
Ilhan Omar is a staunch critic of Israel [Getty]
Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar has slammed the US' hefty military aid budget to Israel, amid a crackdown by Israeli forces on Palestinian protesters.

Taking to Twitter, the Somali-American Congresswoman wrote: "We provide $3.8 billion in military aid to the Israeli government a year, without any accountability. As we speak, the Israeli military plans to force over 500 Palestinians from their homes. We must make sure that no US tax dollars are used to fund this violence."

Omar was referring to the planned eviction of dozens of Palestinians from their homes in the East Jerusalem suburb to make way for Israeli settlers.

Omar echoes the sentiments of fellow Minnesota Democrat Betty McCollum, who last month drafted legislation to put conditions on Washington's aid to Israel due to its abysmal human rights record toward Palestinians.

According to a draft of the bill, McCollum is calling for more oversight of the $3.8 billion aid the US sends annually to Israel.

The text also pushes for explicit assurances that the funds will not contribute to Israeli activities in the occupied West Bank.

Omar's comment comes a day before the deadline for Palestinian families to reach a deal with Israeli settlers seeking to take over their homes.

Earlier this week five Palestinians were arrested after a protest against the planned eviction of families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood to make way for Israeli settlers.

It is common practise in the West Bank and East Jerusalem for Israeli settlers, with the aid of soldiers, to force Palestinians from their homes.

Violence continues

The Israeli army shot and killed a Palestinian teenager in the West Bank on Wednesday, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Sixteen-year-old Said Youssef Muhammad Oudeh "succumbed to his grave wounds caused by live bullets," fired by Israeli troops in the Odla area near Nablus, the ministry added.

The Palestine Red Crescent confirmed having recovered the body of a young man.

It said another young man was wounded by the shots and had been hospitalised.

Israel’s actions towards Palestinians is tantamount to "apartheid", a Human Rights Watch revealed earlier this month.

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