A vocal anti-Israel activist, who has made a number of donations to Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s, D-Mich., Home campaigns, mourned the assassination of a prime Hamas chief on Wednesday, saying his “martyrdom is not in vain.”
Zahra Billoo, a disgraced former Ladies’s March chief and the chief director of Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in San Francisco, took to social media after it was reported that Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran, Iran, prompting Iranian Supreme Chief Ali Khamenei to vow “revenge” for the assault.
“Never say that those martyred in the cause of Allah are dead—in fact, they are alive! But you do not perceive it,” Billoo mentioned within the first a part of her put up, showing to cite the Quran.
“Tonight, we mourn Ismail himself but know his martyrdom is not in vain,” she continued, utilizing a controversial phrase pushed by anti-Israel activists to imply the elimination of Israel. “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
IRANIAN LEADER KHAMENEI SAYS IT’S A ‘DUTY TO TAKE REVENGE’ AFTER HANIYEH ASSASSINATION
Zahra Billoo, left, an ally of Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., mourned the assassination of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh. (Fox Information)
“I mourn yesterday’s martyrs because I can see the horrific path killing peace negotiators leads to,” Billoo added in a follow-up X thread, accusing Israel of a “genocide.”
Billoo’s preliminary put up instantly drew backlash from social media customers, with some individuals mocking the Quran quote and saying the Hamas chief is unquestionably “not alive.”
“Probably important to remember this, too, whenever you see the name CAIR,” journalist Bari Weiss mentioned.
Billoo, who has donated nearly $1,000 to a number of Tlaib campaigns, has been a lightning rod of controversy in recent times over her anti-Israel rhetoric, which led to the left-wing Ladies’s March board severing ties together with her in 2019 after solely serving two days. She posted a 25-post Twitter thread on the time blaming her ouster on an “Islamophobic smear campaign” and “right-wingers.”
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Regardless of the backlash, Tlaib got here to Billoo’s protection the day after the ouster, posting, “#FreePalestine always sis! They won’t silence us for speaking out against human rights violations.”
“They will lie, smear our names and call us anti this and that, but we always be pro-humanity & we have the truth on our side. Stay strong,” she continued.
A number of of Billoo’s controversial posts had been circulating on social media shortly after she was introduced as a Ladies’s March board member.
“If you support Israel, you are no doubt supporting baby killers,” Billoo wrote in a single unearthed 2014 put up that was circulating forward of the ouster. In different posts she described Zionism as “racism” and mentioned she was a “proud anti-Zionist.”
“In looking at the tweets in question, I acknowledge that I wrote passionately. While I may have phrased some of my content differently today, I stand by my words,” Billoo mentioned in 2019 about a number of of her controversial posts.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., and union activists talk about free speech on faculty campuses, on the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, Could 23, 2024. (AP Picture/J. Scott Applewhite)
Previous to the Ladies’s March controversy, Billoo took a “selfie” with Tlaib outdoors her Washington, D.C., congressional workplace in early 2019 and mentioned, “Not all sheros wear capes, some like Rep. [Tlaib] wear Congressional pins!”
“So good to see you sis! I will always speak truth to power because I got you to protect,” Tlaib responded.
Billoo was additionally in attendance at a Tlaib fundraising occasion in California in 2021, in line with a Fb put up.
This isn’t the primary time a CAIR chief has ignited backlash on social media. Final December, Nihad Awad, the chief director and co-founder of CAIR, mentioned he was “happy to see” the Oct. 7 Hamas invasion of Israel and that the Jewish state didn’t have a proper to self-defense as a result of it’s an “occupying power.”
“And yes, the people of Gaza have the right to self-defense — have the right to defend themselves. And yes, Israel as an occupying power does not have that right to self-defense,” he mentioned.
President of American-Islamic Relations Nihad Awad speaks at an occasion in entrance of the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. (Picture by Elif Ozturk/Anadolu Company by way of Getty Photos)
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Along with Billoo’s anti-Israel rhetoric, she has additionally repeatedly attacked Memorial Day and smeared the U.S. navy, questioning why fallen troopers needs to be remembered.
“You think we should honor people who commit war crimes?” she requested in a single put up.
“Did not and does not celebrate #MemorialDay,” Billoo posted in an extended 2019 thread. “There cannot be any honor earned through participation in dishonorable wars.”
Tlaib’s workplace didn’t reply to Fox Information Digital’s request for remark.
Fox Information’ Aubrie Spady and Landon Mion contributed to this report.
