MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s Defence Minister Ahmed Moalim Fiqi on Sunday defended U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar from a scathing attack by President Donald Trump, who criticized both the politician and her country of origin.
In a statement posted on Facebook, Fiqi said his government would stand against any criticism directed at Omar and Somalia, describing her as a successful politician and a Somali icon who has elevated the nation’s profile.
“Somali people are ancient with a long history who appear among every community they live with and everywhere they go,” Fiqi said. He added that “there may be some people who may have rancor from that.”
The comments follow an attack Trump launched on Thursday on his Truth Social platform, in which he slammed Omar and accused Somalia’s government of dysfunction and corruption.
“Ilhan Omar’s Country of Somalia is plagued by a lack of central Government control, persistent Poverty, Hunger, Resurgent Terrorism, Piracy, decades of Civil War, Corruption, and pervasive Violence. 70% of the population lives in extreme Poverty, and widespread Food Insecurity,” Trump wrote.
“Somalia is consistently ranked among the World’s Most Corrupt Countries, including Bribery, Embezzlement, and a Dysfunctional Government. All of this, and Ilhan Omar tells us how to run America!” he continued.
The US president also included a long-debunked conspiracy theory, asking: “P.S. Wasn’t she the one that married her brother in order to gain Citizenship??? What SCUM we have in our Country, telling us what to do, and how to do it.”
In response to the attack, Omar stated that she is proud to be both Somali-born and American.
Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota, is one of the first two Muslim women elected to the U.S. Congress and a member of “The Squad,” a group of progressive lawmakers frequently targeted by conservative critics.
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