Republicans are denouncing progressive Democrat Adam Hamawy over previous ties to a militant Islamist known as the “Blind Sheikh.”
Hamawy, who won his primary race for New Jersey’s deep-blue 12th District on Tuesday night and is virtually guaranteed to win in November’s general election, drew attention during his campaign after his past association with Omar Abdel-Rahman resurfaced.
Abdel-Rahman was the founder and spiritual leader of al Jama’a al Islamiyya, an Islamist terrorist group involved in political violence against the Egyptian government and the United States. He was arrested in 1993 and convicted of seditious conspiracy and terrorism over his involvement in the World Trade Center bombing, earning him a life sentence in solitary confinement.
Hamawy, who has never been charged with anything, testified for the defense during Abdel-Rahman’s trial about his yearslong association with the militant cleric, including joining him in 1991 on a trip to Michigan for a conference on the Islamic economy. During the conference, transcripts show Abdel-Rahman talked about “conquering the land of the infidels,” according to Politico.
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) told the Washington Examiner that Hamawy, a retired U.S. Army combat surgeon, should be investigated if he wins the seat held by retiring Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) in November. Lawler said Hamawy’s ties to Abdel-Rahman raise “significant” concerns and questions that Hamawy has “not adequately addressed.”
“I think there should be a thorough investigation into his ties here, and certainly I would have significant concerns about him serving on any committee, let alone in Congress,” Lawler went on to say.
A spokesperson for Hamawy’s campaign said that the New Jersey Democrat “condemns that man’s violent rhetoric and actions, and all violence, hatred, and terrorism — and he will always. Dr. Hamawy had no contact with this person after they were arrested.”
“He was in the military at the time the events litigated in the trial took place, during the trial, and after the trial,” his campaign said. “In the years that followed, Dr. Hamawy was chosen for one of the most sensitive and highest-trust roles for an Army doctor: deployment to treat critically injured troops in Iraq.”
The spokesperson also defended Hamawy’s association with Abdel-Rahman at the time, saying he was “one of very few religious figures in what was then a very small Muslim community in New Jersey.” According to Hamawy’s campaign, the Democratic candidate saw Abdel-Rahman speak in religious settings during his early 20s.
Republican National Committee spokeswoman Kristen Cianci said in a statement to the Washington Examiner that “Hamawy’s terrorist ties wholly disqualify him from public office, and any Democrat who refuses to condemn him is condoning his actions. New Jersey Democrats will answer for them at the ballot box.”
Hamawy is credited with helping save Sen. Tammy Duckworth’s (D-IL) life after her helicopter was shot down in Iraq in 2004.
“It is because of his sacrifice, that I’m not only alive — but I’ve been able to go on to serve my country and the people of Illinois in the United States Senate,” Duckworth said in a statement regarding the incident.
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Hamawy has campaigned as a progressive Democrat and expressed interest in joining the ranks of the so-called Squad. He is backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI).
National Republican Congressional Committee spokeswoman Maureen O’Toole said in a statement that Hamawy’s ties are “deeply disturbing, and his fellow Democrats, including Rebecca Bennett and Nellie Pou, must answer for them. To remain silent is to condone them.”
Brady Knox contributed to this report.