Former official alleges State Department ignored complaints of racist incidents, including questioning of her loyalty “because she is an Arab” and racist and disparaging remarks about Arabs.
(WASHINGTON, DC – 8/28/2024) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called on the Biden administration to stop violating U.S. laws forbidding arms transfers to the Israeli government and ignoring complaints of Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian, and anti-Arab racism within the government after a former State Department official revealed that she had witnessed, experienced and reported incidents of bigotry, including from an official working on Gaza and Middle East issues who made racist remarks about Arabs.
Rharrit also reported a pattern of ignoring, censoring and sidelining of officials who express concerns, and pressuring U.S. diplomats to deliver talking points to the Arab world that ignore Palestinian suffering. She warned and documented that this was undermining U.S. credibility and was hurting U.S. interests in the region.
WATCH THE VIIRTUAL EVENT HOSTED BY CAIR.
SEE: ‘Enough is enough’: the Muslim American officials who resigned over US’s Israel-Gaza policy – The Guardian
CAIR also today called on the State Department to stop deliberately violating U.S. laws that would forbid additional weapons transfers to the Israeli government, according to the former officials.
During a virtual event hosted by CAIR yesterday titled “Muslim Resignees Speak: How Islamophobia and Anti-Palestinian Racism Fuel the Biden Administration’s Gaza Policy,” former Interior Department official Maryam Hassanein and former State Department diplomat Hala Rharrit spoke about their perspectives on the role of Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian, and anti-Arab racism in shaping U.S. foreign policy toward the Middle East. Both resigned from the government earlier this year in opposition to U.S. support for the Gaza genocide.
Rharrit, who served in the State Department for 18 years and was most recently Arabic language spokesperson for the State Department, alleged that the State Department, in continuing to transfer arms to Israel, was in violation of existing U.S. laws which forbid arms transfers to countries committing human rights abuses. The Israeli government, based on U.S. government findings, is in clear and systematic violation of humanitarian law, which would and should prompt conditioning of arms transfers based on the Arms Export Control Act, Leahy Vetting, and the Foreign Assistance Act.
Rharrit also alleged that the State Department failed to take action in response to written complaints she submitted regarding incidents of anti-Arab racism and anti-Muslim bigotry, including submitting documentary evidence of a current official involved in Gaza issues making racist and disparaging anti-Arab remarks.
Rharrit also said that when she expressed substantive concerns about U.S. policy towards Gaza, based on her deep regional experience, she was repeatedly dismissed because of her identity “as an Arab woman.”
Another time, Rharrit was told that “diversity” doesn’t mean you don’t get to do your job – after she expressed concerns regarding the illegality of the policy and the fact that it was threatening U.S. national security interests and undermining U.S. credibility, which she was monitoring in an official capacity.
In another incident, an official berated Rharrit for attempting to include in a presentation to other diplomats a photograph that had gone viral on Arab social media of an emaciated Palestinian child who had died due to malnutrition. This was aimed toward a discussion on how to effectively message U.S. policy considering these stark realities in Gaza, yet Rharrit was met with attempts to erase the plight of the Palestinians. This same official, who remains in his position of influence, also made racist remarks against Egyptians, saying “I can’t believe these people built the pyramids.”
The State Department failed to take action in response to her complaints about these and other issues, Rharrit alleged during the call.
In a statement, CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said:
“We are deeply disturbed to hear firsthand reports about how the dehumanization of Palestinians and Islamophobia have played a role in influencing the Biden administration’s Gaza and Middle East policies, especially at the State Department.
“Additionally, it is completely unacceptable for the State Department to ignore complaints of racist incidents, question the loyalty of a Muslim and Arab-American diplomat, sideline dissenting voices, and even discourage sharing of photographs of Palestinians suffering as an attempt to further dehumanize civilians in Gaza.
“Given that anti-Arab racism and Islamophobia was permitted behind closed doors, the Administration’s utter disregard for Palestinian civilians and the destruction of Gaza suddenly makes much more sense. The State Department must enforce laws forbidding further arms transfers to the Israeli government and also address bigotry within the State Department itself.”
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@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