Rep. Rashida Tlaib, facing censure motion, calls Hamas actions 'war crimes'

U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Detroit, said Wednesday evening her critics are purposefully distorting her position to make it seem she is sympathetic to Hamas and its attacks on Israel, which she called "war crimes."

Speaking to the Free Press, Tlaib — who is the target of a censure resolution filed by another member of the Michigan congressional delegation for her comments — said there is no defense for the atrocities committed by the group, which the U.S. government labels a terrorist organization. But neither, she added, is there for any extreme retribution exacted by Israel on the civilians in the Gaza Strip from where the attacks were launched or the human rights violations committed by Israel against Palestinians under its control.

"They were war crimes," she said of the Hamas attacks last Saturday, which led to some 1,200 deaths, many of whom were civilians, including women and children, as well as threats that the group might kill hostages it took during the assault. "It's a war crime just like the collective punishment of Palestinians right now is a war crime."

Israel has promised severe retribution, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, will "pay an unprecedented price."

"The violence needs to stop," Tlaib said. "We need to follow international laws that protect the innocent. We can't allow one group to (claim) the justification of more war crimes. Palestinian and Israeli lives are directly impacted if we don't push to stop the violence."

Tlaib, who was first elected in 2018 and became the first Palestinian American woman to join the U.S. House, has been a steadfast critic of Israeli policies in the Palestinian territories, including the West Bank — where her grandmother lives — and Gaza, where human rights organizations say a blockade by Israel has turned the narrow strip of land into an "open-air prison."

Saying her office has received numerous death threats, Tlaib said the criticism against her as antisemitic for continuing to speak out against conditions in the Palestinian territories is an attempt to keep her and other critics quiet. She also said labeling any criticism of the Israeli government as antisemitic is "dangerous."

"I’m the only Palestinian voice right now in Congress," she said, responding to a censure resolution against her filed Wednesday by U.S. Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Watersmeet. "If anything, my voice is needed here more than ever. This is an attempt to silence my voice because I want to violence to stop, no matter whether it’s toward Israelis or toward Palestinians. Much of what I’m hearing from Jack and a number of other colleagues is rooted in bigotry, that somehow because of my ethnicity and my faith that I support terrorism."

Bergman went on social media platform X, formerly called Twitter, on Wednesday evening to announce his resolution to censure Tlaib for failing to denounce Hamas' attacks and what he called her "long-standing history of antisemitic and racist rhetoric toward Israel."

Last weekend, following the attacks that led to more than 1,200 deaths in a surprise breach of Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip, including those of at least 22 Americans, and some 150 people being taken hostage, Tlaib issued an equivocal statement denouncing violence but laying blame at what she called Israel's "apartheid" government.

“I grieve the Palestinian and Israeli lives lost yesterday, today, and every day," Tlaib said in that statement. "I am determined as ever to fight for a just future where everyone can live in peace, without fear and with true freedom, equal rights, and human dignity. The path to that future must include lifting the blockade, ending the occupation, and dismantling the apartheid system that creates the suffocating, dehumanizing conditions that can lead to resistance."

Tlaib said she wished Bergman had called her rather than filing the resolution so they could clear the air.

Bergman said he didn't take filing the resolution lightly but felt he had to do so. "We must be able to call out that kind of unbridled evil in the world," he said, referencing reports that Hamas attackers raped women and killed innocent concertgoers and children.

Some Democrats joined Republicans in criticizing Tlaib for her initial comments. When asked on CNN about Tlaib's response, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Lansing, said, "It shouldn't be hard to condemn terrorists and terrorism."

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden roundly denounced the actions by Hamas, saying there can be no justification for the deadly surprise massacre and the killing of civilians, calling it "pure, unadulterated evil." He promised the unequivocal support of Israel in defending itself. Israel has promised severe retribution against Hamas in the Gaza Strip as the conflict threatens to engulf the region.

Also on Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit, left the Democratic Socialists of America after criticizing it for making pro-Palestinian remarks without specifically denouncing Hamas' actions.

Censure involves a formal vote by the U.S. House, expressing the chamber's disapproval of a member and his or her actions. It carries no specific penalty but can lead to members being ostracized by other members of their party or losing leadership positions or committee posts.

Tlaib told the Free Press that she will not cease her criticism of the policies of Netanyahu, though she acknowledged, "It's going to be incredibly difficult."

"I'm going to remind them that a Palestinian life is just as important as an Israeli life," she said, adding that the Israeli government "has to be held accountable for some of its atrocities," too.

Contact Todd Spangler: [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter@tsspangler.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Rashida Tlaib, facing censure motion, calls Hamas actions 'war crimes'