“Some Things Are Just Not Forgivable”: World Trade Center Survivors Blast NJ Congressional Candidate
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Montvale, NJ — The race for New Jersey’s 12th Congressional District has suddenly taken a highly controversial turn. Dr. Adam Hamawy, a prominent plastic surgeon currently leading the Democratic primary, is facing fierce condemnation from victims and survivors of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
The backlash centers around Hamawy’s historic, years-long friendship with Omar Abdel-Rahman, the notorious “Blind Sheikh” and radical terrorist mastermind who inspired the devastating 1993 attack.
Survivors Speak Out: “Unforgivable” Campaign Ties
For the families of those who lost their lives or survived the blast, the prospect of a close associate of the late Muslim cleric serving in the United States Congress is prompting shock and horror.
“I could not with a clear conscience ever vote for this man. Nor would I encourage anybody else to. Some things are just not forgivable,” said Michael Macko, whose father worked as an assistant chief mechanical supervisor at the World Trade Center and was tragically killed in the 1993 explosion during his lunch break.
Macko, a lifelong Democrat, emphasized that he would rather write in a candidate than support Hamawy.
Other survivors have echoed this deep disgust:
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James Outerbridge, a survivor of both the 1993 bombing and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, stated bluntly that Hamawy “doesn’t deserve to run for political office in our country.”
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Charles Maikish, the Director of the Port Authority World Trade Department at the time of the 1993 bombing, noted that the relationship “disgusts” him, calling it entirely antithetical to a free and open democratic society.
The Roots of the Controversy
While the issue has taken center stage on the current campaign trail, the relationship stretches back decades.
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The 1995 Trial: The controversy first surfaced when public records highlighted a 1995 New York Times article identifying Hamawy as a “supporter” of the radical cleric. Hamawy ultimately served as a defense witness during Rahman’s high-stakes federal trial.
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Recent Comments: The issue reignited after Hamawy reportedly described the terrorist mastermind—who died in federal prison in 2017—as a “leader of the community” while speaking to potential voters on the campaign trail.
The Candidate’s Response
Dr. Hamawy has never denied his past relationship with the Blind Sheikh. However, he has actively pushed back against the intensifying media scrutiny, attempting to distance his congressional bid from the historic ties by labeling the reports as “right-wing, MAGA smears.”
As primary day approaches, New Jersey voters are left to weigh a frontrunner’s medical credentials and political platform against a deeply painful chapter of American history that local survivors refuse to forget.
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Tags: #AdamHamawy #NewJerseyPolitics #WorldTradeCenter #Campaign2026 #DemocratPrimary #NJNews #PoliticalScandals
Pure disgust.he looks like a terrorist himself!!