President Biden sent senior aides to Michigan on Thursday to meet with Arab American and Muslim community leaders, but one of the people invited to the talks was reportedly a terrorist. publicly expressed support for the organization Hezbollah.
Biden made the move in conjunction with leaders as he faces criticism from the Muslim community over his handling of the Israel-Hamas war. The Associated Press, which first reported the forum, noted that the event positions the administration to “repair relationships” with communities that will play a key role in 2024 election battleground states.
A list of attendees was not made public, but one person the White House reportedly invited to the event was Osama Shiblani, publisher of Arab American News, headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan.
“I’m for dialogue. I believe we have an obligation to our country, our communities and the people of Gaza to listen and be heard.” Siblani said A view of the gathering. He told the media that he had received an invitation from the White House and planned to attend.
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Biden reportedly sent White House aides to Michigan on Thursday to meet with Arab American and Muslim leaders. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Siblani, on the other hand, has openly discussed his support for Hezbollah in major publications in the past, making him a questionable choice as a participant.
The Islamic activist announced his support for the organization in 2006 when it fought against Israeli forces in southern Lebanon. At the time, the FBI issued a nationwide warning to law enforcement agencies to investigate and profile Hezbollah supporters.
“If the FBI wants to hunt down people who support the Hezbollah resistance movement, they better bring in the bus fleet,” Siblani said. chicago tribune. “I would gladly go to jail.”
However, this was not the first time he supported a terrorist organization.
Mr Sibulani said: washington post In 2004, Hezbollah’s television station Al-Manar proved popular among Arab Americans because of its unwavering support for “resistance against Israeli occupation.”
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One of the people said to have been invited was Osama Shibulani, who has expressed support for Hezbollah. (AP Photo/Carolyn Custer)
Siblani’s gratitude to al-Manar came after the State Department designated the media outlet as a supporter of terrorism and banned it from broadcasting in the United States.
He also added that he disagreed with the State Department’s opinion that Almanar was “inciting violence.”
The White House organized a meeting for Sibulani on Thursday with regional leaders and senior Biden aides, including U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator Samantha Power, National Security Advisor John Finer and Secretary of State Stephen Benjamin. of the Office of Public Engagement.
The people who spoke to The Associated Press spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
Biden has sent aides to Michigan as regional leaders are at odds with Biden’s war stance on Israel and Hamas.
“Joe Biden is a traitor to America,” Alex Pfeiffer, a spokesperson for Make America Great Again, told Fox News Digital. “He has enriched himself and his family for decades through corrupt deals with America’s enemies, and now he is selling out America’s closest ally and his friend to terrorists,” he said. ”
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“This meeting is an insult to the dozens of Americans and hundreds of Israelis who lost their lives on October 7th, and to the millions of Israelis who wake up every morning under siege from Islamic terrorism,” Pfeiffer said. he said.
The White House and Siblani had not responded to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment at the time of publication.
