Ilhan Omar investigation aims to build case for stripping her US citizenship, report says

Hind Al Soulia - Riyadh - WASHINGTON—The Trump administration’s investigation into Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar is aimed at building a case to strip her of her US citizenship and ultimately deport her, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing American officials and other people familiar with the probe.

The multipronged investigation is focused in part on how the Democratic lawmaker obtained her citizenship after she arrived in the US from Somalia decades ago, according to the report.

Investigators are focused both on the congresswoman and the actions of her deceased father, Nur Omar Mohamed, who brought his daughter and other family members to the US from a refugee camp in Kenya in 1995.

Federal agents searched Omar’s home in Washington early Monday, just weeks before midterm elections in which she is seeking re-election. The Justice Department said the enforcement action “is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation."

Investigators seized several items from the residence, including Omar’s cellphone, notebooks, personal computers and passport, according to people familiar with the search. Omar and her husband were the only people home at the time, WSJ said.

Authorities have also issued more than a dozen subpoenas, including to some of Omar’s relatives, seeking testimony before a federal grand jury in Minnesota, a person familiar with the proceedings told the newspaper.

Omar criticized the federal search at her home on Monday, describing the operation as an effort by the Trump administration to intimidate political opponents.

"Make no mistake: this is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement," she wrote on the social media platform X, confirming her safety.

“For 10 years, Trump has targeted me with baseless lies and smear campaigns. This is just the latest escalation in his campaign of political intimidation,” she said, adding: “I will not be silenced.”

The scope of the investigation into Omar is unclear, though Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has suggested that authorities were examining potential crimes related to her family’s immigration paperwork.

On Tuesday, Washington Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a Fox News interview that “there are several investigations going on” related to Omar and that her office is also probing issues concerning the lawmaker’s financial disclosures.

“If there was a crime that was committed, it will be prosecuted,” Pirro said.

The search of Omar’s home so close to next month’s midterms that will determine control of the House and the Senate was swiftly condemned by Democrats, who accused the administration of targeting the Democrat for political purposes.

The Justice Department has historically sought to avoid public investigative actions involving a candidate within 60 days of a primary or general election.

Omar, who was first elected to the House in 2018, represents Minnesota’s 5th District, including Minneapolis. She is part of The Squad of progressive lawmakers who are a vibrant political force on the left wing of Congress but have also endured repeated attacks from Trump, dating back to his first term. She was one of the first Muslim-American women in the House and the first African refugee to be elected to Congress.