Ilhan Omar says her SOTU guest was arrested after she 'stood up silently' during Trump's remarks

WASHINGTON, DC: Rep Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said her guest at State of the Union address ended up in handcuffs.

In a post on X, the Minnesota Democrat said her constituent, Aliya Rahman, was arrested by US Capitol Police on “Unlawful Conduct” charges after she “stood up silently” during President Trump’s remarks.

Capitol Police arrest Ilhan Omar’s SOTU guest

According to Omar, Aliya Rahman was “forcibly removed” from the House chamber.

“Reports indicate she was aggressively handled until someone intervened to secure medical attention,” Omar wrote. “She was taken to George Washington University Hospital for treatment and later booked at the United States Capitol Police headquarters.”

“The heavy-handed response to a peaceful guest sends a chilling message about the state of our democracy,” she continued. “I am calling for a full explanation of why this arrest occurred.”

Rahman, who is reportedly Bangladeshi American, has previously alleged that she was injured in a run-in with federal authorities. In January, she said she was stopped by Department of Homeland Security agents in Minneapolis and dragged out of her vehicle.

Ahead of the president’s address, Rahman told MS NOW that it has been “really challenging” not knowing the names of the agents involved in that earlier incident.

“But honestly the thing that I’m far more concerned about than myself is that this is an ongoing fear and threat for people around this country,” Rahman said. “What happened to me is absolutely not new in the history of this country, and we have not seen accountability that gives me any reason to believe this won’t be done to somebody else, so that’s what I’m thinking about today.”

Ilhan Omar defends heckling Trump during SOTU

The fireworks in the House chamber unfolded against an already tense night for Omar herself.

The congresswoman drew criticism from Republicans after she heckled the president as he spoke about Somali immigrants during his address. At one point, she could be heard calling Trump a “liar” as he repeated claims about the community’s involvement in a widespread social services fraud scheme in Minnesota.

Speaking with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on February 25, Omar defended her outburst as “unavoidable.”

“The president talked about protecting Americans, and I just had to remind him that his administration was responsible for killing two of my constituents,” Omar said, referencing the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti at the hands of DHS officials in Minneapolis last month. Rather than boycott the speech, the only Somali American serving in Congress said she believed it was important to attend and “hold the space for our constituents that have lived through an occupation from federal law enforcement, that have been terrorized, that have seen our neighbors being killed and traumatized in so many ways.”

Trump blasts Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib after SOTU clash

The president, of course, was not about to let Ilhan Omar’s comments slide.

Trump called her “Low IQ” and accused her and Rep Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich) of screaming “uncontrollably last night at the very elegant State of the Union.” 

“When people can behave like that, and knowing that they are Crooked and Corrupt Politicians, so bad for our Country, we should send them back from where they came, as fast as possible,” he wrote on Truth Social. “They can only damage the United States of America; they can do nothing to help it.”