Omar, Tlaib sponsor resolution against Israel

See Rep. Lee Zeldin's response to the anti-Israel resolution:

Seeking to counter a House resolution to condemn the global boycott, divest and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel, Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., are co-sponsoring a resolution that would assert a right to boycott the Jewish state.

The Muslim lawmakers' resolution, also co-sponsored by Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., likens Israel to Nazi Germany, Imperialist Japan and the Soviet Union.

While the pro-boycott resolution doesn't name Israel or the BDS movement, Omar told media it's about the Jewish state.

"And it is an opportunity for us to explain why it is we support a nonviolent movement, which is the BDS movement," she told Al-Monitor

"We are introducing a resolution ... to really speak about the American values that support and believe in our ability to exercise our First Amendment rights in regard to boycotting."

She added that it's "an opportunity for us to explain why it is we support a nonviolent movement, which is the BDS movement."

However, a co-founder of the BDS movement, Omar Barghouti, has made it clear his aim is the elimination of the Jewish state. Among the significant funders of the movement is American Muslims for Palestine, which has direct ties to Hamas. The Muslim Brotherhood-linked Hamas states in its charter that its reason for existence is to eliminate Israel.

'Hateful twist' on threats to Israel

In opposition, Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., condemned Omar for "propping up" the BDS movement.

"Israel is our best ally in the Mideast; a beacon of hope, freedom & liberty, surrounded by existential threats," he wrote via Twitter. "Shame on Rep Omar for bringing her hateful twist on that reality to House Foreign today, propping up the BDS movement & blaming Israel for all of its challenges."

The resolution states in part: "Americans of conscience have a proud history of participating in boycotts to advocate for human rights abroad including ... boycotting Nazi Germany from March 1933 to October 1941 in response to the dehumanization of the Jewish people in the lead-up to the Holocaust."

The Hill reported leaders in the BDS movement praised the resolution.

"It reassures us that progressives, including in Congress, are defending freedom of expression and the right of oppressed communities, including Palestinians, to peacefully fight for their rights," said Hind Awwad, a spokeswoman for the BDS Movement, in a statement.

Meanwhile, the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday passed a resolution accusing the BDS movement of promoting "principles of collective guilt, mass punishment and group isolation."

In a tweet opposing the anti-BDS resolution, H.R. 246, Tlaib wrote that the measure seeks "to silence opposition of Israel's blatantly racist policies that demonize both Palestinians & Ethiopians."

Tlaib, who is Palestinian, said the First Amendment "right to free speech allows boycott of inhumane policies."