Israel Now Says It Will Let Tlaib In, But Only To Visit Her 90-Year-Old Grandma

DETROIT, MI - JULY 22: U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) speaks at the opening plenary session of the NAACP 110th National Convention on July 22, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. The Convention is from July 20 to July 24 at Detroit’s COBO Center. The theme of this year’s Convention is, “When We Fight, We Win.” (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MI - JULY 22: U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) speaks at the opening plenary session of the NAACP 110th National Convention at the COBO Center on July 22, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. The convention is from July... DETROIT, MI - JULY 22: U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) speaks at the opening plenary session of the NAACP 110th National Convention at the COBO Center on July 22, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. The convention is from July 20 to July 24 with the theme of, "When We Fight, We Win". (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images) MORE LESS
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Despite being officially banned from entering the country by the Israeli government, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) requested special permission to enter this weekend so she can visit her grandmother, according to a Haaretz reporter.

In a letter sent to the Israeli Ministry of the Interior, Tlaib asked to for admittance to the country to visit her relatives, “specifically my grandmother, who is in her 90s.”

“This could be my last opportunity to see her,” she wrote, adding that she would not “promote boycotts against Israel” during the visit.

According to multiple reports, the Israeli government granted the congresswoman’s special “humanitarian” request.

Interior Minister Aryeh Deri reportedly said Friday that his office would approve the request and that he hoped Tlaib would use “the visit for humanitarian purposes only.”

The special request comes after the Israeli government announced Thursday that it would not allow Tlaib or her colleague Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) to enter the country because they’ve been public supporters of the BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions) movement, designed to highlight the realities of Israel’s brutal occupation of Palestine. Tlaib is a Palestinian American and has relatives in Israel.

While the government officially cites their support for BDS as rationale for the blockade, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has a particularly close relationship with President Trump. And the President has a particular vexation with Tlaib, Omar and two other congresswomen of color.

Trump reportedly privately lobbied Netanyahu to deny the two sitting congresswomen entry to the country and also waged a Twitter campaign on Thursday to encourage a ban. An Israeli official made the announcement on Thursday.

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