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A doctored photo that U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez posted to Instagram makes it look like she and three other freshmen lawmakers are posing for a picture in front of a portrait of Osama bin Laden. A doctored photo that U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez posted to Instagram makes it look like she and three other freshmen lawmakers are posing for a picture in front of a portrait of Osama bin Laden.

A doctored photo that U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez posted to Instagram makes it look like she and three other freshmen lawmakers are posing for a picture in front of a portrait of Osama bin Laden.

Ciara O'Rourke
By Ciara O'Rourke January 29, 2019

No, US Rep. Rashida Tlaib wasn't photographed in front of Osama bin Laden portrait

Rashida Tlaib became one of the first two Muslim women to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives when she was sworn in this month, and detractors are trying to tie her faith to terrorism.

"Guess who’s sitting with a picture of Osama bin Laden and an ISIS flag!?" reads a Jan. 27 Facebook post. "Yep, the Congress woman and leftist media darling Rashida Tlaib."

The claim includes a photo of Tlaib and three other freshmen lawmakers: Ayanna Pressley, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar, the other Muslim woman elected to the House. Three decorations seem to hang on the walls behind them: a poster that says "Unfit to serve impeach Trump," a portrait of Osama bin Laden and the flag of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.) And the photo is a fake. The original image was posted by Ocasio-Cortez on Instagram in November with the caption "Squad." There is a portrait hanging behind the women, but it’s not the former leader of al Qaeda.

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U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib was photographed in front of a picture of Osama bin Laden and an ISIS flag.
Sunday, January 27, 2019

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