The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today condemned the “Israel First” firing of Shahed Ghoreishi, the State Department’s top press officer for Israeli-Palestinian affairs. over how to characterize Trump administration policies, including a controversial plan for ethnic cleansing of Gaza.
CAIR said the firing indicates that public officials are joining the growing number of American people opposed to Israel’s genocide in Gaza and the Trump administration’s complicity with that genocide. Ghoreishi reportedly recommended expressing condolences for journalists in Gaza and opposed the forced displacement of Palestinians. He was reportedly fired days later.
The Washington Post reports: “Monday’s firing occurred days after an internal debate about releasing a statement to the news media that said, ‘We do not support forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza.’
“Shahed Ghoreishi drafted the line, which resembled previous remarks made by President Donald Trump and Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff, who said in Februarythe United States would not pursue an ‘eviction plan’ for Gaza. State Department leadership vetoed the move, instructing officials to ‘cut the line marked in red and clear,’ according to a memo dated last week.”
“This unjust firing is part of a disturbing pattern of silencing dissent and punishing moral clarity on human rights in U.S. foreign policy,” said CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad. “It is clear that more and more public servants are no longer willing to quietly enable or excuse the genocide in Gaza. We commend Mr. Ghoreishi for standing on principle, and we condemn the State Department for punishing him for telling the truth.”
He added: “President Trump’s administration has deepened America’s complicity in the ongoing genocide in Gaza, and those who speak up — whether journalists, whistleblowers, or civil servants — are facing retaliation. But truth cannot be fired.
“The Trump administration’s ‘Israel’s First’ agenda is undermining America’s standing at home and abroad. The majority of Americans and a growing number of MAGA leaders and supporters oppose this erosion of values.”
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com