Intolerant authorities in the Muslim majority region of Palestine have banned activities for members of the LGBTQ community on the West Bank. Meanwhile, Democrat Muslim lawmakers, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (MI) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN) continue to passionately defend the intolerant region of Palestine against the tolerant nation of Israel.

LGBT flag on Jerusalem’s King George Street, July 31, 2018. (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)

Gay activist, Ben M. Freeman tweeted about the ban, saying it “My heart breaks for my LGBTQ brothers and sisters from Palestine who are abused by their own.”

In an op-ed for the Jerusalem Post, Bob Feferman wrote about the growing support for the BDS movement that promotes the boycott, divestment, and sanctioning of companies doing business with Israel. Feferman called it, “deeply troubling,” specifically given the human rights violations of Iran who supports the Muslim majority region.

The fact that proponents of the movement have been silent on the human rights abuses, terrorism, and regional mayhem unleashed by the Islamic Republic of Iran raises a fundamental question: Is there no limit to the hypocrisy of supporters of BDS?

The recent comments from U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, a supporter of the BDS, who equated Israel with Iran, were especially disturbing. The best response to her ridiculous claim came from Pete Buttigieg, the openly gay Mayor of South Bend, Indiana and a rising star in the Democratic Party. When asked about the Congresswoman’s statement, he said, “I disagree with the comment comparing Israel to Iran. People like me get strung up in Iran. So the idea that’s what going on is equivalent is just wrong…”

The Mayor is correct and the facts speak for themselves. Iran is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be openly gay. The horrific images of public hangings of young Iranians accused of homosexuality have been all too common.

According to The Guardian, “Iran’s leaders describe homosexuality as “moral bankruptcy” or “modern western barbarism.” Amnesty International estimates that 5,000 gays and lesbians have been executed there since the 1979 Iranian revolution.”

Rep. Rashida Tlaib joins protesters against Israel in her MI district.

The Jerusalem Post is reporting – The Palestinian Authority banned members of the Palestinian Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) community from carrying out any activities in the West Bank.

The ban came after the grassroots group Al-Qaws for Sexual & Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society (Arabic for “the bow”), which engages and supports Palestinians who identify as LGBTQ, was planning to hold a gathering for its members in Nablus at the end of the month. The group operates both in the West Bank and among Arab-Israelis.

U.S. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), who openly makes the people of Palestine her first priority, along with her fellow Muslim lawmaker, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), have been leading the BDS efforts while supporting the intolerant Palestinians. Rep. Omar has a history of repeatedly and unapolagetically making anti-Semitic remarks.

Earlier this month, Al-Qaws held an event in Nablus about sexual and gender diversity in Palestinian society. The PA police, however, learned about the event only days after it was held.

Al-Qaws is a civil society organization established in 2001 with the goal of “fighting for vibrant Palestinian cultural and social change, building LGBTQ communities and promoting new ideas about the role of gender and sexual diversity in political activism, civil society institutions, media, and everyday life.”

The group has offices only in east Jerusalem and Haifa.

Explaining the decision to ban the LGBTQ group from operating in PA-controlled areas, Luay Zreikat, spokesperson for the PA Police, said that such activities are “harmful to the higher values and ideals of Palestinian society.”

Zreikat said that the group’s activities were completely “unrelated to religions and Palestinian traditions and customs, especially in the city of Nablus.”

He accused unnamed “dubious parties” of working to “create discord and harm civic peace in Palestinian society.”

The PA police will chase those behind the LGBTQ group and see to it that they are brought to trial once they are arrested, Zreikat warned. He further appealed to Palestinians to report to the police about any person connected to the group.

In response, Al-Qaws condemned the police threat as “incitement,” and vowed to continue its work despite the serious challenges.

 

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