Rashida Tlaib Supporter Posted Anti-Semitic Khazar Theory To Facebook

A Rashida Tlaib fundraiser shared anti-Semitic posts on Facebook

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, left, gave a medal to a supporter who posted anti-Semitic theories on Facebook. Image by Getty/Facebook/Forward Montage

By Ari Feldman January 30, 2019

A supporter of Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) has posted anti-Semitic theories about the origins of Jews to Facebook, the Daily Caller first reported.

Maher Abdel-qader, an engineer and fundraiser for Tlaib, publicly shared a video earlier this month that falsely suggests that Jews are descended from Khazars, a semi-nomadic Eurasian tribe that was destroyed in the Middle Ages.

In April 2018, Tlaib presented Abdel-qader with a “medal of appreciation” for his support of her campaign. Abdel-qader help organize campaign events for Tlaib across the country, the Daily Beast reported.

Mahel Abdel-qader's anti-Semitic post on Facebook

A screenshot of a video Maher Abdel-qader posted to Facebook. Image by facebook

Maher Abdel-qader posted in 2016 about Khazars

A post about Khazars from 2016. Image by Facebook

Tlaib has previously come under fire for her opinions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In 2017, gene-testing company 23andMe erroneously told Jewish users that they might be descended from Khazars. They later retracted the statement.

Ari Feldman is a staff writer at the Forward. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @aefeldman

Ari Feldman is a staff writer at the Forward. He covers Jewish religious organizations, synagogue life, anti-Semitism and the Orthodox world. If you have any tips, you can email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @aefeldman.

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