Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday morning was deliberating whether to allow two anti-Israel congresswomen, Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), from entering the country, Israel Hayom has learned.
In July, the two Democratic congresswomen announced they would be taking an official trip to both Israel and the Palestinian territories at the end of August, immediately sparking questions over how Jerusalem would handle the situation.
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On Wednesday, Israel Hayom reported that Tlaib and Omar would be arriving in Israel on Friday afternoon and would most likely be accompanied by at least one other US lawmaker with hostile views toward Israel, whose identity was still unknown. Tlaib and Omar had initially planned to land in Israel on Sunday, Aug. 18, but in an effort to mislead Israeli authorities, they apparently decided to hasten their arrival.
After their initial announcement, Israeli Ambassador to the US Ron Dermer said: "Out of respect for the US Congress and the great alliance between Israel and America, we would not deny entry to any member of Congress into Israel."
The two are expected to exploit their visit to launch an anti-Israel public relations campaign.
A law passed in 2017 allows Israel's Interior Ministry to bar any foreign national entry into the country if they have supported boycotting the Jewish state.
Israeli security officials, meanwhile, held secret deliberations in preparation for their possible visit to Jerusalem's Temple Mount, Channel 13 News reported on Wednesday.
According to the report, Israel's deputy national security adviser held a classified meeting to prepare for the visit, where he concluded: "There is high probability" that they will want to visit the Temple Mount due to the fact that both congresswomen are Muslim.
Following the meeting, Israel Police was reportedly instructed not to allow any Palestinian Authority official to accompany Omar and Tlaib to the holy site.
Unnamed sources who spoke to Channel 13 said Israel's security establishment prefers the congresswomen "don't come to Israel at all."
Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump reportedly told senior White House aides that Israel should deny them entry.
Citing three people with direct knowledge of the discussions, news and information website Axios reported on Saturday that Trump believes the two lawmakers should be barred from entering Israel based on their outspoken support for the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement.
White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham denied the Axios report, saying that "the Israeli government can do what they want. It's fake news."
This article was originally published by i24NEWS.
