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US Rep. Ilhan Omar Takes Aim at Israel, Saudi Arabia

US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) has taken aim at both Israel and Saudi Arabia, saying the countries have undue influence over the Trump Administration. In an interview ahead of the publication of her new book, Omar panned both states, saying: “We know the amount of money and influence … that the Saudis have with the administration is really the reason that everything destructive they do is nullified. And that really is no different to what’s happening with Israel.” Omar has in the past drawn the ire of US lawmakers across the political spectrum for using what many perceived as anti-Semitic tropes. “It’s all about the Benjamins baby,” she previously asserted in reference to the AIPAC pro-Israel lobby’s alleged sway on legislators. In the interview, she justified her past statements regarding Israel by insisting that “I talk about Saudi blood money and them being bloodsuckers and [nobody] says ‘this is Islamophobic.’” Omar is a Somali-born Muslim American.