Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) addresses attendees as she takes part in a protest calling for a ceasefire in Gaza outside the US Capitol, in Washington, DC, US, Oct. 18, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Leah Millis

Leading antisemitism watchdog group StopAntisemitism has named US Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) as 2023’s “Antisemite of the Year,” a damning assessment of her public remarks about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and, most notably, Hamas’ massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7.

“Congresswoman Tlaib’s well-earned dishonor reflects a long history of antisemitism, but her statements in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks were particularly unconscionable,” StopAntisemitism said on Monday while announcing Tlaib’s election by a public vote. “She not only victim-blamed Israel, but she also accused it of committing genocide against the Palestinians and continues to defend calls to ethnically cleanse Israel of Jews through genocide.”

StopAntisemitism cited several reasons why voters selected Tlaib, who joins rapper Kanye West on the group’s list of prominent figures to “win” the distinction.

After Hamas’ onslaught, in which Palestinian terrorists murdered 1,200 people and kidnapped 240 others as hostages, Tlaib flew a Palestinian flag outside her home and seemingly blamed Israel for the attack, accusing the Jewish state of having an “apartheid system” that fosters “conditions that can lead to resistance.” Later, the lawmaker accused US President Joe Biden of supporting a “genocide” against Palestinians because he voiced support for Israel’s right to defend itself.

In the following weeks, Tlaib falsely claimed on social media that Israel bombed the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza as part of its military operations targeting Hamas, which rules the coastal Palestinian enclave. It turned out that a misfired Palestinian rocket from Gaza caused a widely reported explosion near the Al Ahli Hospital, according to intelligence from Israel and several Western governments. Experts agreed that Israel was not responsible, but Tlaib refused to recant her claim, arguing that “both the Israeli and United States governments have long, documented histories of misleading the public about wars and war crimes.”

So indecorous was Tlaib’s conduct that in November her colleagues in the US House of Representatives voted to censure  her for  “promoting false narratives” regarding Hamas’ Oct. 7 invasion of the Jewish state and of “calling for the destruction of the state of Israel.”

Tlaib was also prevented that month from speaking on a college campus after Arizona State University canceled an event that its Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter helped organize.

“This is a historically dangerous time for American Jews,” StopAntisemitism added in Monday’s announcement. “Amid an explosion in antisemitic incidents and hate crimes, we can’t afford to have our elected representatives adding fuel to the fire.”

Tlaib beat out Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, among others, to be named StopAntisemitism’s “top antisemite” for 2023.

Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.