WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. President Donald Trump’s strategy to resolve the Syrian conflict is taking “cues” from Russia, Turkey, and Israel, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) argued during a House panel hearing Wednesday without acknowledging that the three countries stand on opposing sides of the more than eight-year-old war.
During a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, Omar told Ambassador James Jeffrey, the president’s special envoy for Syria engagement who was invited to testify:
It seems that the particular conflict in Syria is being birthed out of a need for the people to have freedom and to actualize democracy and I’m concerned that most of our cues right now [are] being taken from Russia, and Turkey, and Israel, and so I’m wondering if that’s sort of a counter message to what we say we are interested in achieving in Syria.
Jeffrey responded by saying the United Nations, backed by the United States, is committed to giving the Syrian people democracy “through free and fair elections monitored by the U.N., including the diaspora.”
“I believe Democracy should not be given, it should be earned by the people, and we should be in partnership with them,” the Minnesota Democrat followed up.
Omar suggested that Russia, Turkey, and Israel are influencing Trump’s Syrian strategy even though these countries do not coincide in their strategy with each other, making it impossible to appease all three.
Ilhan Omar Tries to Talk Tough in Response to DHS Raid, But One Glaring Detail Betrays Her Cowardice
Keep Paying Up to 27% – Or Take Two Minutes to Check If You Qualify for 0%
Hackers target refrigerators at French supermarkets, overheating them and causing fires
Ilhan Omar says she will ‘not be silenced’ following raid on Washington home
Biden-appointed judge with history of fiery Trump clashes erupts at DOJ: ‘You’ve lost all credibility!’
AIPAC takes another shot at el Sayed and hands Rogers a political gamble in Michigan Senate race
Republican lawmakers break with Trump on diesel deal with Russia
Federal agents conduct predawn search of Ilhan Omar’s home in Washington
Watch: Talarico Said He Went to Urgent Care, Now Says He Went to His Doctor 200 Miles Away – What Do We Know?
Big GOP Midterm News: Polling in 9 Key Senate Races Shows GOP Candidates Leading
Democrats see new chances to flip red states — but a $400M GOP spending advantage could derail their plans
SC Dem Senate candidate claims she will stand up to her party as Graham ties her to ‘socialist Democrats’
Pennsylvania gunman who killed 8 was grandfather who seemed normal, victim relatives say
Immigration enforcement officials search Ilhan Omar’s home in pre-dawn raid
Trump’s backyard is quietly transforming into ‘Silicon Valley South’ as wealthy Americans flock in
Russia supports the Iranian-allied regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey backs the opposition. Although Moscow and Ankara have embarked on joint efforts to end the conflict, Turkey remains resolute in its support for Assad opposition forces.
The Russia-Turkey agreement late last year to push al-Qaeda-linked jihadis out of Syria’s Idlib region failed, with Moscow blaming Ankara for the lack of success. Now, the jihadis control most of Idlib and some of the surrounding areas — considered the last remaining rebel stronghold in Syria.
Israel has targeted assets on Syrian soil linked to Assad’s ally Iran. Iran considers Israel, which shares a border with Syria, to be its mortal enemy.
Democrat leaders like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) have defended Omar from bipartisan criticism over repeated antisemitic remarks.
In his written testimony, Ambassador Jeffrey condemned Russia and Iran for enabling Assad, noting that the Syrian regime has been able to re-conquer 60 percent of the war-ravaged country with the help of Moscow, Tehran, and Iranian proxies like Hezbollah.
Ilhan Omar Tries to Talk Tough in Response to DHS Raid, But One Glaring Detail Betrays Her Cowardice
Keep Paying Up to 27% – Or Take Two Minutes to Check If You Qualify for 0%
Hackers target refrigerators at French supermarkets, overheating them and causing fires
Ilhan Omar says she will ‘not be silenced’ following raid on Washington home
Biden-appointed judge with history of fiery Trump clashes erupts at DOJ: ‘You’ve lost all credibility!’
AIPAC takes another shot at el Sayed and hands Rogers a political gamble in Michigan Senate race
Republican lawmakers break with Trump on diesel deal with Russia
Federal agents conduct predawn search of Ilhan Omar’s home in Washington
Watch: Talarico Said He Went to Urgent Care, Now Says He Went to His Doctor 200 Miles Away – What Do We Know?
Big GOP Midterm News: Polling in 9 Key Senate Races Shows GOP Candidates Leading
Democrats see new chances to flip red states — but a $400M GOP spending advantage could derail their plans
SC Dem Senate candidate claims she will stand up to her party as Graham ties her to ‘socialist Democrats’
Pennsylvania gunman who killed 8 was grandfather who seemed normal, victim relatives say
Immigration enforcement officials search Ilhan Omar’s home in pre-dawn raid
Trump’s backyard is quietly transforming into ‘Silicon Valley South’ as wealthy Americans flock in
Jeffrey noted that the Trump administration “is pursuing three mutually reinforcing whole-of-government strategic objectives in Syria – the enduring defeat of ISIS, the removal of all Iranian-led forces from Syria, and the resolution of the Syrian crisis through a political solution.”
Trump inherited the war in Iraq and Syria from former President Barack Obama, who started it in 2014 in response to the rise of the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL).
Story cited here.
