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Ilhan Omar's alleged brother and ex-husband, Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, called himself ‘gay man’ in academic paper

Embattled Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar's ex-husband, Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, called himself a ‘gay man’ in an academic paper. 

Published on: Oct 30, 2026, 13:03:25 IST
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Embattled Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar's ex-husband, Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, called himself a ‘gay man’ in an academic paper. This revelation comes amid allegations of Elmi being Omar's brother.

Ilhan Omar and Ahmed Nur Said Elmi divorced in 2017. (X/@IlhanMN, LinkedIn/Ahmed Elmi)
Ilhan Omar and Ahmed Nur Said Elmi divorced in 2017. (X/@IlhanMN, LinkedIn/Ahmed Elmi)

In a paper titled Out in the Field: Notes on Researching Queer Violence in Kenya, Elmi wrote, “As a gay man of the East African diaspora, my fieldwork was never neutral. It was a space shaped by tension, risk, intimacy, and vulnerability.” A screenshot of the relevant excerpt from the paper has been attached below as well.

Screenshot of excerpt from Ahmed Elmi's paper. (ResearchGate)
Screenshot of excerpt from Ahmed Elmi's paper. (ResearchGate)

The paper notes that Elmi is from the University of Bristol. Omar's ex-husband's LinkedIn notes he's a doctoral researcher in Political Science at the School of Sociology, Politics, and International Studies (SPAIS).

Referring to Elmi's academic paper, The New York Post reported that his “self-described sexual orientation adds to the mounting evidence that his 2009 marriage to Omar was a sham to obtain legal immigration status for her alleged brother.”

What to know about Ahmed Elmi

As per The Post, Elmi began to live with Omar and her first husband, Ahmed Hirsi, in Minnesota in 2009. One of Hisri's friends had described Elmi as an “extremely feminine Somali guy”, saying he was “walking around in tight female clothing, which is heavily frowned upon in the Somali community.”

Also Read | Ilhan Omar's birth year questioned by journalist who flags Congresswoman's memoir stating she was eight during Somali civil war

The publication further reported that when asked about Elmi, Hisri had said it was “his wife’s brother from London." The Post further reported that Hisri had explained Omar married Elmi legally to “get him papers and that [Hirsi] was only Islamically married to her.”

Elmi left Minnesota in 2012 and Omar and he finalized their divorce in 2017.

Despite the allegations, Omar has denied any wrongdoing. When asked if Elmi could be related to her, Omar told MS Now “Not to my knowledge.”

What are the allegations against Ilhan Omar?

Ilhan Omar is in the midst of a federal investigation which seeks to examine whether the Democrat Congresswoman was part of a family conspiracy to commit immigration fraud. If found guilty, it could lead to her denaturalization and deportation.

A New York Times report noted that the FBI and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had investigated Omar's marriage in 2016, during the Barack Obama presidency. They found “some evidence that it was fraudulent,” the report citing former and current officials, noted.

The 2016 case was reportedly stalled after lawyers concluded that any potential crime took place outside the five-year statute of limitations. However, there is no such statute of limitations in the event of civil denaturalization being pursued.

  • Shuvrajit Das Biswas
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Shuvrajit Das Biswas

    Shuvrajit has over seven years of experience covering US, India, and world news. An English Literature postgraduate from Jadavpur University, Shuvrajit started off covering entertainment, gaming and all things pop culture. There were brief periods away from the media industry, with short stints in content marketing, ed-tech and academic editing. However, the newsroom beckoned and over the last few jobs, Shuvrajit has exceedingly focused on team functioning as well, including tracking news and assigning tasks, working on everyday breaking news, framing detailed coverage plans, and creating immersive and data-driven stories. In his time as a digital journalist, he has covered a Lok Sabha election, multiple state elections, Union Budgets and award ceremonies. He has also helped in planning content for company event panels in the past. For work, Shuvrajit enjoys dabbling with data visualization, editing tools, and AI chatbots and attempts to incorporate AI workflows in everyday tasks. He is deeply interested in geopolitics, sports, films and music. Prompting is a new fascination for Shuvrajit now. Apart from that, he can be found doom-scrolling, sharing memes, or cheering on his favorite football team.Read More

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