Video of Ilhan Omar Repeatedly Calling Somali Leader “Our President”; Saying, “The President and I Have a Special Relationship, I Call Him Uncle and He Calls Me His Girl”

A video from 2022 of Somali refugee Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) speaking in the Somali language to a gathering of Somali-Americans in Minneapolis and, according to posted translations, repeatedly calling the visiting President of Somalia Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, “our president,” and saying “Somalia is our home,” is raising new questions about her loyalty to the United States. Omar added she has a “special relationship” with Mohamud. In a visit a week later to Somalia, Omar again called it “our country” while addressing Somali government leaders.

The video from December 15, 2022 resurfaced Tuesday after calls for Omar to be expelled from Congress, stripped of her naturalized American citizenship and deported arose in response to a speech she gave on Saturday to Somali-Americans in Minneapolis.

Two versions of an excerpt from Omar’s 2022 speech were posted on Monday. In the clips, Omar is lavishing praise on Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who also addressed the gathering.

Omar said, according to translations, “I am very honored to have the chance that our president, president of Somalia, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, let us give him a warm welcome, Minnesota! (her comments about the cold December weather in Minnesota were edited out in one version.) The president and I have a special relationship. I call him uncle and he calls me his girl. Welcome to your home. Our home is your home. Welcome to Minneapolis. We are very happy that Hassan is our president. Somalia is our home. It is home to all the people gathered here. We do not feel that it is far from us. Somalia is our heart. It is in our hearts. We always think about Somalia.”

This is an edited version posted by End Wokeness that cut out Omar’s comments about the cold December weather in Minnesota, saying Mohamud’s next visit should be in the summer.

Rep. Ilhan Omar refers to the President of Somalia as “our president”

“We have a special relationship. I call him uncle and he calls me his girl.”

“Somalia is our home. It is our heart. We always think about Somalia.” pic.twitter.com/yxHqyk35OQ

— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) January 30, 2024

Unedited version posted by Drew Pavlou with mostly similar translation but with commentary in the captioning (and a few seconds extra at the end about “peace”:

In this bizarre speech Ilhan Omar pledges allegiance to the President of Somalia, tells the audience she calls him “uncle,” concludes by praising a Somali military operation against Somaliland (a region which has been independent for more than 30 years) pic.twitter.com/tVGt1nhWBP

— Drew Pavlou 柏乐志 🇦🇺🇺🇦🇹🇼🇨🇾 (@DrewPavlou) January 30, 2024

The full speech without translation can be found on Facebook.

A week later, Omar again referred to Somalia as “our country” in remarks made in Somalia while addressing with government leaders (VOA excerpt):

U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar hailed recent victories scored by the Somali government and local community forces against al-Shabab militants in central Somali regions.

Omar, who was born in Somalia, has been visiting the country since Thursday. In Mogadishu, she met with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre and members of the Cabinet and parliamentarians on Monday.

Speaking at a dinner in her honor hosted by Barre, Omar congratulated the Somali leaders for the “big success” against al-Shabab militants.

Omar called for collaboration in defeating the group she accused of “dishonoring” Islam.

“Our country and our religion have been associated with terrorism [because] of the dishonor they brought on us,” she said. “We have to get rid of them as Somalis and as Muslims and pray and support each other in that work.”