Nur Omar Mohamed, father of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, dies from coronavirus complications

0
1061
The late Nur Omar Mohamed is seen here with his daughter Congresswoman Ilhan Omar on January 2, 2019 at Reagan National Airport in Washington as they arrived for Rep. Omar to take the oath of office as a congresswoman, becoming the first black person born in Africa to do so. Nur Omar Mohamed died Monday, June 15, 2020 of coronavirus complications. Photo: Courtesy of Rep. Ilhan Omar
The late Nur Omar Mohamed is seen here with his daughter Congresswoman Ilhan Omar on January 2, 2019 at Reagan National Airport in Washington as they arrived for Rep. Omar to take the oath of office as a congresswoman, becoming the first black person born in Africa to do so. Nur Omar Mohamed died Monday, June 15, 2020 of coronavirus complications. Photo: Courtesy of Rep. Ilhan Omar

On Monday June 15 Nur Omar Mohamed, the father of congresswoman Ilhan Omar, died from COVID-19 complications.

“إِنَّا لِلّهِ وَإِنَّـا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’cuun. Surely we belong to God and to Him shall we return,” Rep. Omar wrote in a statement. “It is with tremendous sadness and pain that I share that my father, Nur Omar Mohamed, passed away today due to complications from COVID-19.”

Mr. Mohamed immigrated to the United States in 1995 with his family after living in a refugee camp in Kenya for 4 years after fleeing the civil war in Somalia. They settled in Arlington, Virginia before moving to Minnesota where he worked as a taxi driver and later for the United States Postal Service.

The congresswoman has long credited her father for encouraging her to pursue politics and to speak for what she believes in. Rep. Omar is the first black person born in Africa to be elected to the US Congress.

“No words can describe what he meant to me and all who knew him,” the congresswoman said in the statement sent to media Monday evening.

He is survived by his children and grandchildren.

Author

  • Cynthia Simba, Mshale Reporter

    Cynthia is a graduate of the University of Minnesota School of Journalism. She has interned at Mshale and Voice of America and previously worked at the Minnesota Daily. She recently returned from Seoul, South Korea where she was an English educator.

About Cynthia Simba, Mshale Reporter

Cynthia is a graduate of the University of Minnesota School of Journalism. She has interned at Mshale and Voice of America and previously worked at the Minnesota Daily. She recently returned from Seoul, South Korea where she was an English educator.

1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading...