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Latest: Rep. Tlaib says she will not visit Isreal

The National Interest

Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib says she will not visit Israel's occupied West Bank this weekend. That's the latest twist in a story in which Israel first said it would allow her entry to Israel as part of a Congressional delegation -- then reversed that decision yesterday  -- then said it would allow Tlaib to visit family on humanitarian grounds. 

Tlaib is a Palestinian American and one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress. She says she had planned to meet with Israelis as well as Palestinians during her visit. But President Trump pressured Israel to block her official visit.

"I'm not out there just having this "hate agenda," and pushing this through. That's what he's doing," Tlaib said. 

In a statement, Tlaib said she decided against the trip because the terms imposed on her visit were racist, and meant to silence and oppress her.