RUTHFULLY YOURS

Anti-Semitism is quickly on the rise within the Democratic Party, and the poster children for it are two high-profile freshmen US Representatives, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan. Florida, too, has its own Democrat Islamist anti-Semite, anti-Israel activist Rasha Mubarak. Mubarak is on a mission to destroy the Jewish state, Israel, and she is taking the Florida Democratic Party with her.

Elected in November 2018, Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib are the first Muslim women to serve in the US Congress. Recently, both have been cited for making anti-Semitic statements, relative to the issue of Israel. And while no one suggests that criticism of Israel is out of bounds, the statements that these women have made have crossed the line. This includes bringing up the ‘dual-loyalty’ canard, which has been used against Jews for millennia, and suggesting that Jewish money is buying off politicians. These assertions and more have led to both Omar and Tlaib being reprimanded by the Simon Wiesenthal Center and members of their own party.

Minnesota and Michigan are not the only states where Democratic Party leaders are spouting anti-Semitism. It is happening, as well, in the Sunshine State and in a big way.

On April 9th, the Florida Young Democrats (FYD) released, in part, the following message: “We are excited to officially welcome Rasha Mubarak to our FYD Board as Central Florida Regional Director. Though a new addition to our board, Rasha has already been hard at work with chartering a new Osceola Young Democrats, working on this year’s Campaign Academy programming and leading our 2019 Convention planning in Orlando.”

In Mubarak’s statement accepting the role as FYD Central Florida Regional Director, she announced that she was ending her two-year term as President of the Young Democrats of Orange County (YDOC).

In the April 9th FYD message welcoming Mubarak, FYD also acknowledged that Mubarak had previously served as the Central Florida Regional Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). By acknowledging this fact, FYD was admitting that Mubarak had been involved in a group associated with international terrorism.

CAIR was established, in June 1994, as part of an umbrella group headed by then-global leader of Hamas, Mousa Abu Marzook. CAIR has been cited by the US government for its involvement in the financing of Hamas. CAIR-Florida, itself, has been linked with support for Hamas. In July 2014, CAIR-Florida was the co-sponsor of a pro-Hamas rally held in Downtown Miami. After the rally, the event organizer, Sofian Zakkout, wrote, “Thank God, every day we conquer the American Jews like our conquests over the Jews of Israel!” In August 2014, CAIR-Florida Executive Director Hassan Shibly tweeted, “Israel and its supporters are enemies of God.”

CAIR was not the only terror-linked group Mubarak has been affiliated with. She has also been a longtime volunteer for Islamic Relief (IR).

Islamic Relief’s ties to terror are well known. The Russian government has accused Islamic Relief of supporting terrorism in Chechnya. Israel has banned the group, labeling it a Hamas front and arresting the organization’s Gaza Program Manager, Ayaz Ali, in 2006, for providing “funds and assistance to various Hamas institutions and organizations.” At the end of 2014, Britain’s HSBC bank cut ties with Islamic Relief over concerns about “terrorist financing.” Reports show that Islamic Relief has sent millions of dollars to and received tens of thousands of dollars from groups related to al-Qaeda.

In November 2014, Mubarak was a featured speaker at the Al-Awda 12th Annual International Convention, held in Fort Lauderdale. Al-Awda, the Palestine Right to Return Coalition, is a US-based activist group, which opposes Israel’s right to exist. Participating, along with Mubarak, were then-Chair of Al-Awda, Anas Amireh, who advocates Palestinians use cars as weapons and refers to Israel as the “Zionist enemy,” and then-Vice Chair of Al-Awda, Abbas Hamideh, who told Jews, in October 2015, “Rest assured Zionism will be eradicated and if you’re lucky you’ll be sent back to Europe where you belong…” Hamideh says peace with Israel only means “surrender.”

Though she was born in Brooklyn, New York and grew up in Orlando, Florida, Mubarak likes to refer to herself as a Muslim Palestinian American. Her bias against Israel is evident in most everything she does and says. But like Representatives Omar and Tlaib and her comrades at Al-Awda, Mubarak’s views regarding Israel are far beyond criticism. Indeed, Mubarak believes Israel does not have the right to defend herself.

This month, when Hamas launched more than 600 rockets into Israel, leading to the deaths of four civilians, Mubarak tweeted/retweeted against anyone who would dare defend Israeli retaliation. Her targets included former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, Producer of “The Ellen Show” Andy Lassner, and Mayor of New York City Bill de Blasio, who rightly described Hamas’ rocket attacks as “brutal” and “an affront to humanity.”

In November 2012, Mubarak clearly spelled out her stance on this subject, tweeting, “#LiesImTiredOfHearing Israel has the right to defend herself.” At the time, Israel had launched a war against Hamas, much like now, in retaliation for Hamas massive rocket fire. Regarding this, when her fellow CAIR operative Laila Abdelaziz tweeted, “Don’t worry ya Gaza, we’re working hard for you in Florida,” Mubarak, retweeted her, adding, “Yes we are!”

As well, at the end of the 2014 Israel-Gaza Conflict, Mubarak retweeted photos of a jubilant Hamas, who had, after so much bloodshed, pitilessly just declared victory. One of her posts read, “Thousands of people celebrating in the streets of Gaza for the victory. Alhamdulillah. #VictoryForGaza.”

Mubarak has been pulling the Florida Democratic Party into her terror-related bigoted world.

In December 2017, Mubarak had her YDOC and the Seminole County Young Democrats partner with CAIR for her ‘HANDS OFF JERUSALEM RALLY FOR PALESTINE.’ All of the groups’ logos are plastered on a dark and menacing poster advertising the rally and featuring images of a Palestinian flag and the Dome of the Rock. A video of the event highlights an anti-Semitic rant made by Mubarak’s uncle, Orlando real estate investor Said Lutfi, who, during the rally, referred to Jews as “the crappiest piece of s**t on this planet,” “baby killers,” and “Jesus killers.” Lutfi stated, “A ‘Jew’ is a curse.”

In September 2018, Mubarak did a live streamed video with FYD President Jake Sanders to discuss BDS, the bigoted movement to boycott Israel. In the video, Sanders, who was elected President in May 2017 and who claims to have a “Jewish heritage,” seemed clueless of the fact that he was being used by Mubarak, in order to legitimize BDS. Mubarak begins by calling soon-to-be-Governor Ron DeSantis “racist” for “demonizing ”BDS and CAIR, as a way, she claims, “to show his solidarity with the Jewish community.” An uncomfortable moment occurs, when Sanders declares both he and Mubarak “believe in a two-state solution”; she quickly corrects him saying she does not.

Rasha Mubarak is leading the Florida Democratic Party down an anti-Semitic trajectory, which has now become a disturbing trend. It appears Mubarak can manipulate the FDP to push her bigotry against Jews and the Jewish homeland with impunity. And ‘useful idiots,’ like Jake Sanders, have given her carte blanche, so that she has the platform to do it.

There has been zero pushback from Democratic leadership, and given that the national party has not managed to properly condemn the anti-Semitism of its two Islamist Congresswomen, this comes as no surprise.

The Florida Democratic Party would be smart to cut ties with the cancer Mubarak and relieve her of her position immediately. However, if history proves correct, the party will just rally to her support and ignore the problem completely.

Beila Rabinowitz, Director of Militant Islam Monitor, contributed to this report.