Elaine Luria issues statement on Israel trip

U.S. Rep. Elaine Luria (VA-02) today issued the following statement after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to deny U.S. Reps. Ilhan Omar (MN-05) and Rashida Tlaib (MI-13) entry into Israel.

“Visiting Israel as an incoming Member of Congress provided me an important opportunity to see first-hand the necessity and value of a strong bilateral U.S.-Israel relationship. As anti-Semitic and anti-Israel sentiments are becoming more prevalent in the United States, engaging with Israel must not become a partisan issue,” Congresswoman Luria said. “I believe the decision to refuse entry to Members of Congress is a missed opportunity for them to see first-hand the existential threats at Israel’s borders and to understand the significance to our own national security of maintaining a strong US-Israel relationship.”