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Dr. Esam S. Omeish (born December 19, 1967, in Tripoli, Libya) is a Northern Virginia physician, chief of the Division of General Surgery at Inova Alexandria Hospital since 2006, former President of the Muslim American Society, a group with close ties to the extremist Muslim Brotherhood, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Dar Al-Hijrah mosque.

In August 2007, Virginia Governor Timothy M. Kaine appointed Omeish to the Virginia Commission on Immigration. A month later Omeish resigned his seat on the commission after the governor learned of incendiary statements he had made.

Education and family

In 1982, he immigrated to the United States, not knowing any English. Omeish attended J. E. B. Stuart High School in Falls Church, Virginia, where he and his brothers started the first Friday prayers in a high school in the District of Columbia area.

He attended Georgetown University. Upon graduating with a double major in Government and Biology in 1989, he attended the Georgetown University School of Medicine, where he completed his studies in 1993.

Omeish helped start the first chapter of the Muslim Students Association (MSA) at Georgetown, and chaired the MSA Council for the Washington, DC, metropolitan area during his tenure at Georgetown.

His wife, Badria Kafala, is a scientist with a Ph.D. in molecular genetics, and they had four children as of 2009: Abrar, Anwar, Yousof, and Ibrahim.

His brother, Mohamed S. Omeish, is President of the US branch of the International Islamic Relief Organization, which the United Nations has associated with terrorism.

Islamic leader

Dar al-Hijrah

Omeish is a former Vice President and current board member of the Dar al-Hijrah mosque in Falls Church, Virginia.

In 2004 Omeish, at 36 then the youngest member of the mosque's Board of Directors, said there is "no question" that the mosque leadership needs to be more open and inclusive of younger people, including women. "The bottom line is that this is a mosque that is in the heart of Washington," he said. "Our goal is to make the congregation reflect that reality."

As of December 2009, he was still a member of the mosque's Board of Directors.

Muslim American Society

In 2004, as President of the Muslim American Society, Omeish wrote a letter to the Washington Post in which he disagreed with the conclusions of a Washington Post article, and described the Muslim Brotherhood, which he admitted influenced the MAS, as having "moderate" views.

In 2005, as President of the MAS, Omeish told reporters: "The fact of the matter is we know of no sleeper cells, we don't know of that phenomenon to exist in our community." He was still President of MAS as of 2007.

Political career

Jihad controversy; resignation from Virginia commission

Virginia Governor Timothy M. Kaine appointed Omeish to the Virginia Commission on Immigration, which was examining whether Virginia should do more to restrict illegal immigration.

On September 27, 2007, Omeish resigned as a commission member, at the Governor's request, three hours after incendiary remarks he made were brought to the Governor's attention on a radio call-in show on WRVA radio in Richmond, Virginia, and only two days after having been sworn in at the commission's first meeting. "That is news to me, what you say, and it's something we will check out," Kaine told the caller.

Omeish appeared in one video telling a crowd of Washington-metropolitan-area Muslims:

"you have learned the way, that you have known that the jihad way is the way to liberate your land."

He appeared in another video screaming to a boisterous crowd:

"We must prosecute those who are responsible for this war. Impeach Bush today! Let us cleanse our State Department, our Congress, our Pentagon of those who have driven America into this colossal mistake."

Omeish also appeared in a video of an August 12, 2006, rally in Washington near the White House, denouncing Israel's invasion of Lebanon and the "Israeli war machine." He also accused Israel of genocide and massacres against Palestinians, and said the "Israeli agenda" controls Congress.

The Washington Post reported that after the videos surfaced "Kaine was forced to ask for Omeish's resignation," and Fox News reported that "After footage of the speech was released in 2007, Omeish was forced to resign from Virginia state immigration commission".

"I have been made aware of certain statements he has made which concern me," Kaine said while accepting Omeish's resignation. He added that background checks would be more thorough in the future.

Omeish told a news conference that jihad has nothing to do with violence, but instead is about inner struggles leading to spiritual triumph. Omeish said his remarks were "taken out of context." He said Kaine was reacting to "speech excerpts taken out of context by proponents of a relentless campaign of ... Islamophobia."

Journalist Cal Thomas wrote in response:

"Such explanations are presented after a terrorist act or a radical is exposed. Radicals also have been known to lie, especially to "infidels." Omeish claims his remarks were "taken out of context." The context appears clear to anyone familiar with the language of the Middle East. Most rational people understand "the jihad way," especially when it is associated with Israel, as meaning the violent overthrow of Israel (and other democracies) and the destruction of the Jewish people."

After Omeish resigned, the office of House Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford) released a statement from Delegate. C. Todd Gilbert (R-Shenandoah) entitled "Kaine Appointee on Board of Directors of Radical 9-11 Mosque", referring to the Dar Al Hijrah mosque.

Candidacy for state assemblyman

In 2009 Omeish ran for State Assemblyman in a primary election in the 35th District of the Virginia General Assembly. Jim Hyland, the Republican candidate for the seat, said Omeish was a poor choice to represent his region's growing Muslim community. "What criteria were they using to select people?" he said. "I think (his views) come from a small-minded perspective—got to fight Israel and all that sort of rhetoric. Some people have tried move beyond that." John Carroll, who ran against Omeish in the primary, said: "I was surprised (when I watched the video). He's about as nice a guy as you can meet."

Columnist Marc Fisher wrote in The Washington Post, in a column entitled "From Fairfax To Richmond, 'The Jihad Way?'":

"A candidate who speaks with great pride and zest to an audience of fellow Muslims about people "giving up their lives..for the sake of the Muslim honor" should also be someone who happily delivers the same message to the Virginia voters he hopes will choose him for public office. But there is not a word in Omeish's campaign literature about this great passion of his life."

Omeish came in third in the primary, with 1,039 votes (15.7%).

Clinton call

In June 2009, United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton invited Omeish to join 100-200 invitees on a conference call that she held with Muslim leaders and academics after President Barack Obama delivered a speech in Cairo.

References

1. "Esam S Omeish; Statement of Economic Interests: Salary/Wages", Virginia Public Access Project, accessed 18 January 2010
2. ^ Osborne, James (June 8, 2009). "Clinton Invites Controversial Muslim Leader on Conference Call". Fox News. Retrieved December 31, 2009. Cite error: The named reference "Fox" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
3. "Esam S Omeish; Statement of Economic Interests: Business Interests", Virginia Public Access Project, accessed 18 January 2010
4. Ahmed-Ullah, Noreen S., Roe, Sam, and Cohen, Laurie, "A rare look at secretive Brotherhood in America," Chicago Tribune, September 19, 2004, accessed January 3, 2009
5. ^ Fisher, Marc (April 29, 2009). "From Fairfax To Richmond, "The Jihad Way?"". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 18, 2010.
6. "Omeish for Delegate, Meet the Candidate," accessed January 1, 2010
7. United Nations List of proscribed individuals and entities, accessed December 30, 2007
8. Infiltration: how Muslim spies and subversives have penetrated Washington, Paul E. Sperry, Thomas Nelson Inc, 2005, ISBN 1595550038, 9781595550033, accessed December 10, 2009
9. "Facing New Realities as Islamic Americans," Caryle Murphy, Washington Post, September 12, 2004, accessed December 9, 2009
10. "Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center, Home, About us, Board of Directors", accessed December 10, 2009
11. "MAS President Letter to the Washington Post," Date Posted: Thursday, September 16, 2004, Muslim American Society, accessed December 9, 2009
12. Cosgrove-Mather, Bootie, "MAS's Muslim Brotherhood Problem; Does Muslim American Society Want An Islamic Government In U.S.?," CBS News, May 25, 2005, accessed December 9, 2009
13. "Bush visits Egyptian embassy, U.S. Muslim leaders call for calm," CBC News, July 25, 2005, accessed December 9, 2009
14. Cesari, Jocelyne, Encyclopedia of Islam in the United States, Volume 1, p. 447, Greenwood Press, 2007, ISBN 0313336261, 9780313336263, accessed January 17, 2009
15. "Virginia Commission on Immigration, Meeting Minutes," Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources, September 25, 2007, accessed January 18, 2010
16. Craig, Tim, "Republicans Seize on Muslim Appointment", Washington Post, October 4, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
17. Lewis, Bob, "Va. Appointee Quits Over Video Showing Him Urging ‘the Jihad Way'," The New York Sun, September 27, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
18. "Virginia Governor Tim Kaine Accepts Resignation of Controversial Appointee", FOX News, September 27, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
19. Stealth jihad: how radical Islam is subverting America without guns or bombs, Robert Spencer, Regnery Publishing, 2008, ISBN 1596985569, 9781596985568, accessed December 9, 2009
20. Craig, Tim, "Republicans Seize on Muslim Appointment", Washington Post, October 4, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
21. Craig, Tim, "Muslim on Va. Commission Quits After Videos Surface; In Videos, Surgeon and Muslim Activist Denounces Israel and Speaks of 'Jihad Way'", The Washington Post, September 28, 2007, accessed January 18, 2010
22. Craig, Tim, "2 GOP Lawmakers Allege Democrats Have Ties to Terrorism," Washington Post, C6, October 21, 2007, accessed January 18, 2010
23. "Immigration official resigns after 'jihad' remark; Muslim appointee to immigration panel seen in video condemning Israel", Associated Press, September 27, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
24. "Kaine Announces Esam Omeish's Resignation", The Washington Post, September 27, 2007, accessed January 17, 2010
25. Lewis, Bob, "Videos Spur Va. Appointee's Resignation", September 27, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
26. Thomas, Cal, "'Jihad way': Spiritual triumph, or euphemism for overthrow by Islam?," Tucson Citizen, October 3, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
27. "Muslim Appointee To Virginia Immigration Panel Resigns," ABC News, September 28, 2997, accessed December 9, 2009
28. Thomas, Cal, "No mistaking remarks on 'jihad way'," The Hillsboro Times-Gazette, October 4, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
29. Craig, Tim, "Republicans Seize on Muslim Appointment", Washington Post, October 4, 2007, accessed December 9, 2009
30. "2009 Elections > Virginia > House of Delegates (35) > Esam S. Omeish (D); About The Candidate", The Washington Post, accessed January 18, 2010
31. Manz, Donna, "Keam Wins Democratic Nomination for 35th District", Vienna Connection, June 12, 2009, accessed December 9, 2009
32. "Esam S Omeish: June 2009 Democratic primary in House District 35", Virginia Public Access Project, accessed January 17, 2009

External links

• Omeish Organizing for America blog
• Omeish Wordpress blog
• Omeish Facebook fanpage
• Esam Omeish for Delegate 2009
• Louie, Elaine, "Ramadan: A Time For Fasts And Feasts", The New York Times, February 8, 1995

• 1967 births
• Living people
• American Muslims
• Muslim activists
• People from Tripoli
• Georgetown University alumni
• Virginia Democrats
• American surgeons
• People from Falls Church, Virginia