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Ilhan Omar Says Trump Has ‘No Legal Right’ to Take Over Gaza, Blames Harris Loss on Israel-Hamas War
US Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) speaks at a press conference with activists calling for a ceasefire in Gaza in front of the Capitol in Washington, DC, Dec. 14, 2023. Photo: Annabelle Gordon / CNP/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
US Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) blasted President Donald Trump’s proposal to relocate Palestinian civilians in Gaza, arguing in a new interview that the United States has “no legal right” to take over the enclave and calling on the leaders of neighboring Arab countries to “stand in solidarity” against Israel.
During a Friday interview with progressive journalist Mehdi Hasan on Zeteo, Omar fielded questions about the Trump administration’s approach to resolving the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Hasan asked Omar to reveal her feelings about Trump’s suggestion that Palestinian civilians be transferred out of the war-torn enclave in order to rebuild it.
“Well, I just think the irony of Trump being elected to be the anti-imperialist president coming in and talking about taking over Canada, Greenland, and now kicking all the Palestinians out of Gaza to turn it into a resort for himself and his billionaires, and then the fact that the American people don’t see it is just fascinating,” Omar responded.
The Minnesota Democrat argued that Trump has “no legal right to take over Gaza” and that the Palestinians are going to “fight for that right” to stay in the coastal enclave, which borders southern Israel.
Earlier this month, Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was visiting the White House, held a press conference following their private meeting in the Oval Office. Trump asserted that the US would assume control of Gaza and develop it economically into “the Riviera of the Middle East” after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere. Trump’s proposal was met with widespread backlash and skepticism across the US Congress.
Omar also blasted leaders of neighboring Arab countries for their “cowardice in allowing for the destruction of the Palestinian people,” urging them to “stand in solidarity” with the civilians of Gaza.
Hasan, who is also an outspoken opponent of Israel, said that Democrats “haven’t given a damn about Palestinian livelihoods over the past 18 months,” noting the pro-Israel stances of high-profile liberals such as Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA). He then asked Omar if she believes the Democratic Party will become more adversarial toward Israel in an effort to counter the Trump administration.
Omar said she’s “not sure” if the Democratic Party will adopt a more anti-Israel ideological bent, citing the alleged “erasure of the Palestinian people, the ethnic cleansing, the genocide” that has supposedly happened in Gaza over the past 16 months. She cautioned that Democratic support for Israel will continue “until there is a price to pay and that price is felt.” The congresswoman claimed that American support for Israel will undermine its moral authority in speaking up against genocides that occur in the world.
Omar also suggested that 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris lost the White House in November because of the Israel-Hamas war. The lawmaker pointed to polling data that indicated large swaths of voters “stayed home because of the bloodshed, the genocide that was televised on their phones.”
However, according to polling data compiled by Blueprint, a Democratic-aligned data analytics firm, the Israel-Hamas war had minimal impact on Harris’s election performance. Voters largely rejected Harris and supported Trump due to the Biden administration’s record on inflation and immigration, the poll found. Perception of Harris being “too pro-Israel” ranked among the bottom three “reasons to not choose” Harris. Notably, perception of Harris being “too pro-Palestine” ranked higher in the list of concerns among respondents.
Since being elected to Congress in 2018, Omar has established herself as a harsh critic of Israel. She has accused the Jewish state of committing “ethnic cleansing” in Gaza and erecting an “apartheid” government in the West Bank. The lawmaker has also publicly declared support for the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement (BDS), which seeks to turn the Jewish state into an international pariah as a first step toward its eventual destruction.
In the 16 months following the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, slaughter of roughly 1,200 people and abduction of 250 others in southern Israel, Omar has positioned herself as one of the most vocal opponents of the Jewish state’s defensive military efforts. Omar was among the first members of Congress to call for a ceasefire between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group in Gaza, falsely arguing that the Jewish state’s military operations “indiscriminately” killed Palestinian civilians. She has repeatedly issued calls for an “arms embargo” on Israel and has suggested that the Jewish state could violate the terms of the current ceasefire deal to continue its so-called “genocide.”
The post Ilhan Omar Says Trump Has ‘No Legal Right’ to Take Over Gaza, Blames Harris Loss on Israel-Hamas War first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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‘With or Without Russia’s Help’: Iran Pledges to Block South Caucasus Route Opened Up By Peace Deal
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 8, 2025. Photo: Kevin Lamarque via Reuters Connect.
i24 News – Iran will block the establishment of a US-backed transit corridor in the South Caucasus region with or without Moscow’s help, a senior adviser to Iran’s supreme leader was quoted as saying on Saturday by the Iran International website, one day after the historic peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
“Mr. Trump thinks the Caucasus is a piece of real estate he can lease for 99 years,” Ali Akbar Velayati said of the so-called Zangezur corridor, the establishment of which is stipulated in the peace deal unveiled on Friday by US President Donald Trump. The White House said the transit route would facilitate greater exports of energy and other resources.
“This passage will not become a gateway for Trump’s mercenaries — it will become their graveyard,” the Khamenei advisor added.
Baku and Yerevan have been at loggerheads since the late 1980s when Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous Azerbaijani region mostly populated by ethnic Armenians, broke away from Azerbaijan with support from Armenia. Azerbaijan took back full control of the region in 2023, prompting or forcing almost all of the territory’s 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee to Armenia.
Yet that painful history was put to the side on Friday at the White House, as Trump oversaw a signing ceremony, flanked by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
The peace deal with Azerbaijan—a pro-Western ally of Israel—is expected to pull Armenia out of the Russian and Iranian sphere of influence and could transform the South Caucasus, an energy-producing region neighboring Russia, Europe, Turkey and Iran.
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UK Police Arrest 150 at Protest for Banned Palestine Action Group
People holding signs sit during a rally organised by Defend Our Juries, challenging the British government’s proscription of “Palestine Action” under anti-terrorism laws, in Parliament Square, in London, Britain, August 9, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
London’s Metropolitan Police said on Saturday it had arrested 150 people at a protest against Britain’s decision to ban the group Palestine Action, adding it was making further arrests.
Officers made arrests after crowds, waving placards expressing support for the group, gathered in Parliament Square, the force said on X.
Protesters, some wearing black and white Palestinian scarves, chanted “shame on you” and “hands off Gaza,” and held signs such as “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action,” video taken by Reuters at the scene showed.
In July, British lawmakers banned Palestine Action under anti-terrorism legislation after some of its members broke into a Royal Air Force base and damaged planes in protest against Britain’s support for Israel.
The ban makes it a crime to be a member of the group, carrying a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.
The co-founder of Palestine Action, Huda Ammori, last week won a bid to bring a legal challenge against the ban.
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‘No Leniency’: Iran Announces Arrest of 20 ‘Zionist Agents’
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi addresses a special session of the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
i24 News – Iranian authorities have in recent months arrested 20 people charged with being “Israeli Mossad operatives,” the judiciary said, adding that the Islamic regime will mete out the harshest punishments.
“The judiciary will show no leniency toward spies and agents of the Zionist regime, and with firm rulings, will make an example of them all,” spokesperson Asghar Jahangiri told Iranian media. However, it is understood that an unspecified number of detainees were released, apparently after the charges against them could not be substantiated.
The Islamic Republic was left reeling by a devastating 12-day war with Israel earlier in the summer that left a significant proportion of its military arsenal in ruins and dealt a serious setback to its uranium enrichment program. The fallout included an uptick in executions of Iranians convicted of spying for Israel, with at least eight death sentences carried out in recent months. Hit with international sanctions, the country is in dire economic straights, with frequent energy outages and skyrocketing unemployment.
In recent weeks Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi affirmed that Tehran cannot give up on its nuclear enrichment program even as it was severely damaged during the war.
“It is stopped because, yes, damages are serious and severe. But obviously we cannot give up of enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists. And now, more than that, it is a question of national pride,” the official told Fox News.