Twitter bans Rep. Ilhan Omar's challenger over hanging comment

A Republican challenger to freshman Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar has been permanently banned from Twitter after suggesting that the Muslim congresswoman should be hanged for treason.

Danielle Stella, a first-time candidate in Minnesota's Fifth Congressional District, twice tweeted messages this week amplifying an unfounded conspiracy theory that Omar shared sensitive intelligence with Iran, according to the Washington Post.

"If it is proven @IlhanMN passed sensitive info to Iran, she should be tried for #treason and hanged," Stella posted Tuesday from her official campaign account, @2020MNCongress.

The same account reportedly published a link to a blog post that included a crude image of a stick figure hanging from the gallows.

A Twitter spokeswoman told media outlets that Stella's personal and campaign accounts were shut down for "repeated violations" of the social media platform's rules.

"My suspension for advocating for the enforcement of federal code proves Twitter will always side with and fight to protect terrorists, traitors, pedophiles and rapists," Stella told the Washington Times.

The 31-year-old special education professional launched her campaign in June, pitching herself as the tough-on-crime candidate. Stella gained attention after a number of social media posts referencing QAnon, a far-right conspiracy theory. She also has been arrested twice on shoplifting charges.

Omar responded to Stella's tweets on the same platform. "This is the natural result of a political environment where anti-Muslim dogwhistles and dehumanization are normalized by an entire political party and its media outlets," she tweeted. "Violent rhetoric inevitably leads to violent threats, and ultimately, violent acts."