Ilhan Omar’s citizenship records under scrutiny as relatives receive subpoenas
Investigators are examining Omar’s family immigration records, according to reports. A separate report says her sister is among those subpoenaed; Omar rejects the inquiry as political retaliation.
US investigators are examining how Representative Ilhan Omar obtained citizenship and have subpoenaed people in her family circle, according to reports published on October 15. The inquiry follows a search of her home. Omar denies wrongdoing and calls the investigation political retaliation; it has not revoked her citizenship.
What investigators are examining
The Wall Street Journal reported that authorities are examining Omar’s citizenship and family immigration records, citing US officials and people familiar with the investigation, according to Al Jazeera and Hindustan Times. Al Jazeera, attributing the account to the Journal, said investigators are looking at whether Omar or her late father altered her age in immigration paperwork. That remains an investigative question, rather than an established finding of fraud.
Hindustan Times reported that the Justice Department described the matter as an ongoing federal criminal investigation. Al Jazeera said investigators had issued more than a dozen subpoenas, including to relatives, for testimony before a Minnesota grand jury. Its account of those details was attributed to the Journal.
In separate reporting by The New York Times, republished by The Straits Times, a sister, Sahra Noor, and at least one other person in Omar’s family circle received subpoenas, according to people familiar with the matter. The Times reported that investigators are examining the family’s history for possible fraud and false statements in immigration paperwork.
The home search and Omar’s response
Al Jazeera, citing the Journal and people familiar with the search, reported that agents took Omar’s passport, phone, computers and notebooks. Omar’s office rejected the investigation as baseless in remarks to the Journal, Al Jazeera reported.
Hindustan Times quoted Omar saying she would not be silenced and describing the probe as an effort to intimidate a political opponent. She said federal law enforcement was being weaponized against political opponents.
What the inquiry means for Omar’s citizenship
Al Jazeera said the Journal had reported no lawsuit seeking to revoke Omar’s citizenship. Revocation would require court proceedings; the investigation alone does not authorize deportation. Whether authorities will bring a case was not immediately clear.
Omar arrived in the United States in 1995 after living in a refugee camp in Kenya and became a citizen in 2000, Al Jazeera reported. Her father died in 2020. Al Jazeera also reported, citing the Journal, that Homeland Security Investigations examined a similar allegation during the Biden administration but did not pursue it because it lacked evidence of fraud.
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Sources and context
- Ilhan Omar faces potential citizenship revocation as Trump-era investigation expands after FBI searchHindustan Times; the citizenship inquiry details are attributed to The Wall Street Journal
- Trump administration seeks to strip Ilhan Omar of US citizenship: WSJAl Jazeera; the citizenship inquiry details are attributed to The Wall Street Journal
- US Justice Department issues subpoenas in Ilhan Omar investigationThe New York Times, bylined Ernesto Londoño, Alan Feuer and Devlin Barrett; republished by The Straits Times
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.