Shocking testimony in a Florida court where a Qatari-born Canadian businessman, Alan Bender, told the court in a video statement that Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) is a Qatari intelligence asset who has passed on sensitive information to the government of Qatar, which then passed it on to Iran.

The testimony came during the trial of Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad al-Thani, the brother of the former emir of Qatar, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani. He is accused of ordering his American bodyguard to murder two people, and of holding an American citizen hostage.

Bender accused Omar of being bought by the Qatari security services and said she was getting money and support even before she ran for office.

Jerusalem Post:

According to his sworn deposition, the three officials told him: “If it wasn’t for our cash, Ilhan Omar would be just another black Somali refugee in America collecting welfare and serving tables on weekends.” Bender testified that the officials asked him to recruit American politicians and journalists as Qatari assets, and that when he objected, was told that several prominent figures were already on the payroll. Omar was described as the “jewel in the crown,” he said. Qatar “recruited Ilhan Omar from even way before she thought about becoming a government official… They groomed her and arranged the foundation, the grounds, for her to get into politics way before she even showed interest. They convinced her,” he added.

It’s difficult to believe that Qatar is responsible for Omar’s decision to become a politician. She majored in political science in college and from her early life, she was involved in Democratic politics in Minnesota. Sounds like the Qatari security officials were trying to impress Bender.

Nevertheless, the accusation is plausible. Omar believes the U.S. is evil, so she could easily see betraying an evil country as being justified.

That’s not even the full extent of Omar’s betrayal:

The deposition shows he further told the court that, during a 2017 meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Omar swore allegiance to him. At the time she was a junior state representative in Minnesota. Omar was said to also have passed information to Qatar which was subsequently handed along to Iran, and was actively involved in recruiting other American politicians to likewise work for the west Asian Islamic country, Bender testified. “The best thing money can buy is American officials, because they are the cheapest of the cheapest-costing officials in the world,” the Qatari officials were said to have told him.

Omar blames “Saudi Arabian trolls” for the charges.

“Since the day she was elected, Saudi Arabian trolls and mouthpieces have targeted Omar with misinformation and conspiracy theories,” a spokesperson for the Congresswoman wrote in a statement to The Jerusalem Post. “The latest, outlandishly absurd story from a Saudi-funded media outlet is of course false and only the latest in that trend,” the statement said. “The only people Rep. Omar represents in Washington are the people of Minnesota’s 5th District. She will continue to speak out against human rights violations around the world – whether it is war crimes in Yemen or the caging of children at our border – regardless of who commits them.”

Bender’s deposition first appeared in Al Arabiya English, which is indeed funded by the Saudi government. But other media outlets like the Jerusalem Post have authenticated Bender’s testimony independently. Whether it’s true or not is the question.

We know that both the Soviet Union and China recruited American politicians over the last 50 years and it’s been long believed that Saudi Arabia has several members of Congress in its pocket. It would not be shocking news if Omar is, indeed, a Qatari agent. But proving her treason in court is an entirely different matter.