El-Sayed Faces Backlash Over Sister’s Resurfaced ‘October 7th Blessing’ Video
Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed is facing a new controversy after a years-old video involving a member of his family resurfaced and prompted his campaign to publicly distance the candidate from some of the rhetoric.
The footage was recorded on a particularly sensitive anniversary and is now attracting renewed attention as El-Sayed campaigns for one of the most consequential Senate seats in the country.
Eman Abdelhadi, El-Sayed’s half sister and a University of Chicago professor, delivered what organizers called an “October 7th blessing” on Oct. 7, 2024, exactly one year after Hamas terrorists killed approximately 1,200 people in Israel.
“I want to say, Allahu Akbar,” Abdelhadi said at the beginning of the video.
“That phrase means God is greater, and it’s an important phrase in the Muslim tradition,” she continued.
“It’s one that I’ve been thinking about a lot over the last year, because it’s a phrase that reminds us that no matter how great the brutality, the oppression, the intensity of what we’re going through, the horizon of justice is just around the corner,” Abdelhadi said.
The video does not specifically mention the Israelis killed during Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks, and Abdelhadi appeared in the recording wearing a keffiyeh.
The resurfaced remarks prompted Fox News Digital to seek a response from El-Sayed’s Senate campaign, which stressed that the candidate does not share all of his sister’s political positions.
“Abdul loves his sister and also disagrees with her on a number of political positions and the rhetoric she’s chosen to use, including on foreign policy,” a campaign spokeswoman said.
“But Abdul is the one on the ballot, and his record of public service and his platform is what matters to voters here in Michigan,” the spokeswoman continued.
“His campaign has always been about his love for America and Michigan,” she added.
Abdelhadi continued her 2024 remarks by discussing her religious faith and commitment to what she described as justice.
“There is something greater than even the strongest armies, and, for me, that’s God,” Abdelhadi said.
“Reflecting on that reaffirms my commitment to justice, my commitment not to get caught up in the narratives that colonial powers enforce on us,” she continued.
“I hope you know that we have a lot of work ahead of us and that we need each other to do that work,” Abdelhadi said.
“We have an imperative to not just imagine a better future, but to build one together,” she added.
“I’ll see you on the streets,” Abdelhadi concluded.
The video was published in a collaborative Instagram post involving Abdelhadi and Rabbis4Ceasefire, which described it at the time as an “October 7th blessing from Eman Abdelhadi, Scholar, Writer & Organizer.”
Abdelhadi added context to the post Friday, saying Rabbis4Ceasefire organized and named the event as “a moment of grief for lives lost between 10/7/23 and 10/7/2024” and describing her remarks as her “offering” to the gathering.
The resurfaced footage nevertheless generated criticism from El-Sayed’s political opponents and conservative commentators.
“Jewish Michiganders are proudly putting country over party and rejecting Abdul El-Sayed’s extremism,” Democrats for Mike Rogers wrote on X.
“We must put country over party and elect Mike Rogers,” the group added.
Abdelhadi has also attracted attention for her activism, including an October 2025 arrest after she allegedly spat on an Illinois state trooper during a demonstration outside a suburban Chicago ICE detention center.
Authorities charged her with two felony counts of aggravated battery to a government employee and two misdemeanor counts of resisting or obstructing a peace officer, Fox News reported.
El-Sayed has called both Hamas and the Israeli government “evil” and faced criticism after sending a fundraising email on the second anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks that criticized Israel’s military operations without mentioning Hamas’ initial killings
BREAKING: Dolly Parton’s Cause Of Death Revealed: ‘Brief Battle’
Dolly Parton’s death came after a brief battle with cancer, her representatives revealed Tuesday.
The country music legend died Aug. 25 at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville. She was 80.
Parton had been admitted to the cancer center Friday, four days before her death. Her representatives confirmed the cancer diagnosis in a statement to PEOPLE but did not disclose what type she had.
“Our beloved Dolly Parton spent her life and career bringing joy, laughter, hope and integrity into everything she touched. Her unmatched generosity reached the lives of countless people whom she would never meet, yet she was always there to offer a helping hand,” the statement read.
“Whether it be the hundreds of millions of books donated through her invaluable Imagination Library or funding research that helped create a lifesaving vaccine used around the world, Dolly’s unconditional love for all people was the guiding force for her lasting impact. After bravely facing a brief battle with cancer, Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center surrounded by loved ones,” the statement concluded.
The “Jolene” singer had also been dealing with kidney and autoimmune issues before her death, PEOPLE previously reported.
Just days earlier, Dolly Parton opened up about her declining health and acknowledged that she had put off addressing some medical issues while caring for her husband, Carl.
“As I’ve shared in video messages throughout the past year, I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over [my husband] Carl. You know, this isn’t the first time I’ve had to manage something like this. Back in the early ’80s, I was down for several months with female issues, and I was struggling with my weight at the time too, so it’s not like I haven’t been through hard times with my health,” Parton told PEOPLE.
Her nephew, Bryan Seaver, announced her death in an Instagram video Tuesday on behalf of the Parton and Owens family.
“My name is Bryan Seaver, son of Cassie Parton, and I’m representing the Parton and Owens family today announcing the passing of my aunt, Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean, Sister, Sis and Granny to one generation and Gigi to the next,” he says in the video.
Seaver, who served as Parton’s head of security for more than two decades, said she had asked him years earlier to deliver the announcement.
“This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago, before I fully absorbed it as a future reality,” he continued. “As her head of security for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held before me, I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it until now.”
Seaver said the moment brought immense pride and heartbreak, but he took comfort in his faith that Parton had been reunited with Carl and other loved ones.
Seaver added: “It is an honor, an honor that is mixed with absolute pride and great sadness. But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly. Dolly has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by Carl, her parents and countless othe
Shocking 'truth' behind Prince Harry's decision to quit major role
Prince Harry should have "resigned in disgrace" from the board of a controversial African wildlife charity, a commentator says. James Walker makes the bombshell remark in Wednesday's episode of this publication's podcast, Daily Expresso.
He and the show's host, JJ Anisiobi, delve into the Duke of Sussex's dramatic decision to step down from African Parks. James, commenting on the controversy, said: "When you hear about this stuff and how long it's been going on for, you should be resigning in disgrace. [Harry] should be saying: 'I'm not touching that with a barge pole. That is a failed entity. We're going nowhere near it'.
"But no. He's still saying he's going to 'support their mission'. And again this Caroline Pearce, executive director of Survival International, goes on to say: 'His departure doesn't undo that record'.
"She alleged that African Parks was aware of the abuses for years, but it was only after Survival complained to Harry that the charity finally commissioned an investigation."
James added: "Well, she's got a point."
It emerged on Monday (August 24) that Harry was no longer a board member of the wildlife charity.
The conservation organisation has admitted that human rights abuses were committed by its rangers against members of the semi-nomadic Baka group in Congo-Brazzaville.
African Parks has said since that it has improved its safeguarding processes both in the Odzala-Kokoua National Park and institutionally.
Its admission followed an independent human rights investigation into allegations guards managed and paid by the charity had beaten, raped and tortured indigenous people in Odzala-Kokoua National Park.
Harry was president of the charity for six years before he became a member of its board of directors in 2023.
A spokesman for the Duke said he remains an active and avid supporter of African Parks. He added: "The Duke is proud of his 10 years with African Parks and fully supports the ongoing strengthening of its board.
"His commitment to conservation in Africa continues and he remains a supporter of African Parks’ mission."
Human rights organisation, Survival International, said it had been calling on Harry to step down from African Parks for years.
The group's director, Caroline Pearce, said in a statement: "It’s outrageous that for 10 years Prince Harry has served African Parks while the organisation has been responsible for abuse and violence against Indigenous people.
"His departure doesn't undo that record — African Parks itself must now be held accountable, and must abandon this model of fortress conservation for good."
Survival International said indigenous peoples know how best to manage their land and the idea outsiders know better is racist and colonial.
