As we’ve been reporting, tomorrow is a #DayWithoutAWoman, a scheduled protest and general strike that’s supposed to show just how important women are to America. And as you’ve also probably heard by now, the march is being led by Rasmea Odeh, a convicted terrorist:
Again, someone remind the parents in Alexandria & Chapel Hill that the Women's March organizer is a TERRORIST https://t.co/nztjgDdtGk
— ?Merry Ginger ?? (@mchastain81) March 6, 2017
The new face of feminism is convicted terrorist, Rasmea Yousef Odeh. She helped kill Israeli students https://t.co/qcraRC81HO #WomensMarch
— Frank Gaffney (@frankgaffney) March 7, 2017
Sorry kids, your @ACPSk12 teachers are out today because they support Palestinian terrorist and convicted killer #RasmeaOdeh https://t.co/0bCZP0g51m
— Cameron Gray (@Cameron_Gray) March 6, 2017
More on Odeh from Legal Insurrection:
Rasmea Odeh, a military member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, was convicted of being the mastermind of the bombing. The evidence of Rasmea’s guilt was and is overwhelming, and has grown more so over the years.
The fact that a convicted terrorist is set to lead tomorrow’s festivities even had feminist Jill Filipovic questioning the move:
https://twitter.com/JillFilipovic/status/838849875546624000
https://twitter.com/JillFilipovic/status/838850294247206913
Oh, bad move. Libs were having none of it:
you should feel like a horrid person/feminist. aren't you in Kenya? maybe no one cares what you have to say about organizing.
— Anya Parampil (@anyaparampil) March 6, 2017
https://twitter.com/goth_teen69/status/839123856799461379
https://twitter.com/jrhennessy/status/838940891951726592
JILL FILIPOVIC: Gonna be hard to do worse than that Rasmea Odeh tweet earlier
ALSO JILL FILIPOVOC: Hold my beer
— Juggalocialism (@UweBollocks) March 6, 2017
Odeh has claimed that she was raped while in custody and her confession was coerced:
"Even if her version of events…" (being brutally sexually assaulted by Israeli soldiers, forced into confession, jailed for years, etc) https://t.co/UHhH0Pb8PI
— Max Blumenthal (@MaxBlumenthal) March 6, 2017
.@JillFilipovic Read about the courageous woman you just casually branded a "terrorist": https://t.co/EtChSdti12
— Max Blumenthal (@MaxBlumenthal) March 6, 2017
Her allegations of rape and torture were rejected by the court, however. From Snopes:
A 23 January 1970 report in the Jerusalem Post said Rasmea Odeh and the four other people accused of the bombings were members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a designated terrorist organization. The court rejected her claims of torture “for lack of evidence.” Exhibits presented at the trial, which lasted six months and was reportedly attended by an International Red Cross observer, included physical evidence such as bomb making materials found at Odeh’s home. She was sentenced on 22 January 1970.
What’s even more curious about Filipovic’s tweet is that she seems to acknowledge questions over Odeh’s conviction and she still questioned her leadership role tomorrow:
https://twitter.com/JillFilipovic/status/838854348654379031
Odeh will face trial in May over allegations that she lied on her immigrations paperwork when she emigrated to the U.S. in the 90s. From Snopes:
When Odeh emigrated to the U.S. in the mid-1990s, she failed to admit she had a criminal record, leading to her indictment and arrest in October 2013. She was tried for providing false information on her immigration application in U.S. District Court, where presiding Judge Gershwin Drain disallowed testimony about Odeh’s torture and the post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) she suffered, saying they were unrelated to her lying on her immigration papers.
Odeh was convicted of immigration fraud and sentenced to 18 months in prison by Drain, who said she had committed both perjury and acts of terrorism, according to a recap of the sentencing hearing in the Detroit Free Press:
“You lied under oath,” Drain said. Referring to a Marxist Palestinian group the U.S. State Department labels a terrorist organization, Drain added: “She was a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. I think she was involved in some terrorist activity.”
Odeh successfully appealed that conviction, however, and has been granted a new trial, set for May 2017. Meanwhile, she is free on bail and still listed as an organizer of the 8 March 2017 Day Without a Woman strike.
Our attempts to contact Rasmea Odeh or a representative for comment via her attorneys and the organizers of the Day Without a Women strike have thus far been unsuccessful.
***
Join the conversation as a VIP Member