A Palestinian activist who co-founded an anti-Israel group announced her run for Congress this week, in hopes of flipping a GOP seat.
Huwaida Arraf, who co-founded the International Solidarity Movement, is running as a Democrat in Michigan’s 10th Congressional District, currently represented by Republican Rep. Lisa McClain.
“Our rights and democracy are under attack, and it’s clear that Washington politicians aren’t working for us,” Ms. Arraf said on her website. “This moment calls for bold, ambitious leadership willing to tell the hard truths and take on the tough fights.”
Ms. Arraf’s group has been investigated by the FBI over potential terrorism ties.
The group has previously promoted articles that suggest resisting against Israelis by using violent and nonviolent methods.
Ms. Arraf, however, has rejected assertions that she’s expressed condoning violence, calling them “lies” to undermine her campaign.
“These attacks are nothing new and will not deter me,” Ms. Arraf tweeted on Friday, with a link to a Fox News article tying her to violent rhetoric.
Ms. Arraf, a first-generation American who grew up in southeastern Michigan, has railed against members of Congress for not standing up against what she says are human rights abuses conducted by the Israeli government.
“It seems like whatever the Israeli government does, the United States is, for the most part, has been an uncritical supporter,” Arraf told MLive. “We do sometimes speak out about settlements, but then don’t do anything about it. It’s mostly lip service, and then Israel continues to take more land, to oppress more people.”
Ms. McClain, who was elected in 2020, compared her new opponent to her far-left colleagues in the House and Senate.
“Huwaida Arraf is a Bernie Sanders style socialist who does not share the views of Michigan’s 10th Congressional District,” Ms. McClain told Fox News. “The last thing we need in Congress is another member of the Squad, and that’s exactly who she would align with if elected.”
The Squad is a reference to the self-styled name of a group of progressive Democratic congresswomen that includes Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.
• Mica Soellner can be reached at msoellner@washingtontimes.com.
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