Michigan activist who promoted the use of 'violent resistance' against Israelis announces run for Congress

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A Michigan activist who promoted the use of violence against Israelis announced that she will be running for Congress

Huwaida Arraf will run for Michigan’s 10th congressional district as a Democrat, a seat currently held by Republican Rep. Lisa McClain.

Arraf is known for being a co-founder of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), an anti-Israel group that was investigated by the FBI for possible ties to terrorists.

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As an ISM co-founder, the Democrat candidate assisted in the organization of the 2010 Gaza Strip floatilla that the Israeli military pushed back against.

Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., sat down with "Fox & Friends First" to discuss the comments made by "Squad" member Rashida Tlaib to defund immigration enforcement. McClain recently introduced a resolution to support DHS, ICE and CBP. (Fox News Channel)

McClain told Fox News in a Friday statement that Assaf is the same kind of politician as democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.

"Huwaida Arraf is a Bernie Sanders style socialist who does not share the views of Michigan’s 10th Congressional District," McClain said. "The last thing we need in Congress is another member of the Squad, and that’s exactly who she would align with if elected."

Arraf and fellow ISM co-founder Adam Shapiro penned an article that promoted using nonviolent resistance against Israelis in tandem with violence — regardless of their ties to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).

"The Palestinian resistance must take on a variety of characteristics — both nonviolent and violent," the article read. "But most importantly it must develop a strategy involving both aspects."

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks to a reporter as he leaves the U.S. Capitol following a vote on August 03, 2021 in Washington, DC. The Senate has moved on to the amendments process this week for the legislative text of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill, which aims to fund improvements to roads, bridges, dams, climate resiliency and broadband internet. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

"No other successful nonviolent movement was able to achieve what it did without a concurrent violent movement — in India militants attacked British outposts and interests while Gandhi conducted his campaign, while the Black Panther Movement and its earlier incarnations existed side-by-side with the Civil Rights Movement in the United States," the ISM co-founders continued.

Additionally, the ISM leaders detailed the use of "violent" resistance to achieve goals.

"Violent resistance is when an armed Palestinian fighter shoots an Israeli who is oppressing him," they wrote, 

They did not specify Israeli soldiers, but rather "any Israeli deemed to be 'oppressing' a Palestinian."

In 2010, ISM was deemed by the Anti-defamation League (ADL) as one of the top 10 anti-Israel organizations in the country. The FBI has also investigated ISM for possible links to terrorists, but FBI documents reported in 2020 by the Intercept did not detail any charges levied.

Huwaida Arraf headshot, Palestinian-American activist, photo

ISM was also criticized by the ADL in 2014 for the group's response to the kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teens, with ISM saying the teens were "missing" and dismissing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s attribution of the murders to internationally recognized terrorist organization Hamas.

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Additionally, the Democrats’ fundraising apparatus, ActBlue, is allowing Arraf to fundraise on the platform.

Arraf's campaign pointed to its press release announcing the Democratic candidate's campaign when asked for comment by Fox News.

"As the daughter of working-class immigrants and now a mom of two young kids myself, I know the daily challenges facing working people all too well," Assaf said in the release. "Michiganders today are working as hard as ever and can’t make ends meet as stagnant wages fail to keep up with the rising price of gas, groceries, housing, daycare, and healthcare."

"I’m running for Congress because every Michigan family wants and deserves the same things: good-paying jobs, quality schools, safe neighborhoods, resilient infrastructure, clean air and water, and healthy communities," she continued. "We deserve better than Washington politicians who care more about their corporate donors’ checks than they do Michiganders’ paychecks."

Houston Keene is a reporter for Fox News Digital. You can find him on Twitter at @HoustonKeene.