Squad member Rashida Tlaib has been blasted after paying tribute to Palestinian PhD student who died after ramming her car at Israeli checkpoint then running at soldiers with a knife.
The US Representative for Michigan sparked backlash after writing a Tweet claiming Israel is dehumanizing Palestinians by withholding the body of Mai Afana, who was reportedly killed after attacking Israeli Defense Force soldiers.
On Saturday, Tlaib shared a picture of Ph.D. student Afana's mother Khuloud, according to Fox News, and said the Israeli government 'killed' Afana and would not return her body to her family.
Squad member Rashida Tlaib has been blasted after paying tribute to Palestinian PhD student who died after ramming her car at Israeli checkpoint then running at soldiers with a knife
The Tweet read: 'Meet Mai Afana's mother, Khuloud, who is fighting to be able to bury her daughter & begin her healing.
'Mai was a mother, loving daughter & successful PhD student. She was killed by the Israeli government last June. Israel won't release her body to her family.'
Tlaib said the Israeli government was making claims 'without proof' in an effort to 'continue to dehumanize Palestinians even after they have died.'
In the thread, she continued: 'I am sharing Mai's story because I began to only learn last year of this inhumane practice by the Israeli govt.
The US Representative for Michigan sparked backlash after writing a series of Tweets claiming Israel is dehumanizing Palestinians by withholding the body of Mai Afana
'Without proof, they make claims, and all to just continue to dehumanize Palestinians even after they have died. We must stand against this form of collective violence.'
Afana was reportedly killed in June after ramming her car into an Israeli checkpoint along the West Bank.
She then got out of her car and ran towards IDF soldiers with a knife, injuring one of the soldiers.
According to reports, Israel withholds bodies to negotiate the return of Israeli bodies or captives that are being held by Hamas.
Tlaib said Palestinians 'deserved the same dignity' as other people and that Anafa's body is one of 'hundreds being held' which denies loved ones closure.
She wrote: The Palestinian people deserve the same dignity as any other human being.
The Michigan congresswoman was blasted over the post, with journalist Jerry Dunleavy pointing out that Tlaib left out key information about Afana's death
'To deny the right to see their loved ones for a modicum of closure is another form of painful violence from the U.S. sponsored, Israeli arsenal. Mai's dead body is one of hundreds being held.'
The Michigan congresswoman was blasted over the post, with journalist Jerry Dunleavy pointing out that Tlaib left out key information about Afana's death.
He wrote: 'Somehow unmentioned in this tweet from Rashida Tlaib is why Mai Afana was killed.
Many others were quick to condemn Tlaib's Tweet, with Boris Epshteyn, Trump's special assistant, deeming it 'anti-semitic'
'For instance, the Israel Defense Forces said at the time: “The assailant attempted to ram into a number of IDF soldiers, exited her vehicle with a knife drawn, and was neutralized in response.”'
Many others were quick to condemn Tlaib's Tweet, with Boris Epshteyn, Trump's special assistant, deeming it 'anti-semitic'.
He wrote: '@RashidaTlaib continues demonizing the Jewish people. Afana tried to ram her car into Israeli soldiers and attacked them with a knife. That’s called a terrorist attack.
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