WASHINGTON, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib on Friday announced that she had decided to cancel her planned trip to the Israeli-occupied West Bank after Israel greenlighted her entry for a family visit.
Tlaib claimed in a statement that she "decided to not travel to Palestine and Israel at this time. Visiting my grandmother under these oppressive conditions meant to humiliate me would break my grandmother's heart."
Israel's interior ministry announced earlier on Friday that it would allow Tlaib to enter the country as a private citizen to visit her aging grandmother, a move that came one day after Israel barred Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, another newly-elected U.S. lawmaker, from entering the country, a decision announced less than an hour after U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted "it would show great weakness" if Israel allowed the two Democratic lawmakers to visit.
Both Tlaib and Omar are known for their criticism of the Israeli treatment of the Palestinians.
Israel's decision on Thursday has been blasted severely by U.S. lawmakers from both parties.
