Steve Nikoui, the father of 1 of the 13 fallen Marines who were killed as the U.S. pulled out of Afghanistan, was arrested after disrupting President Joe Biden's State of the Union address, authorities say.
Nikoui, the father of Marine Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui, who was killed during an attack at the Abbey Gate of Hamid Karzai International Airport during the August 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, attended the speech at the invitation of Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla.
As Biden was saying, "America's safer today than when I took office," he was interrupted by Steve Nikoui, who yelled "Abbey Gate! Second Battalion. First Marines," according to the New York Post.
An explosive device was detonated by an ISIS-K terrorist at Abbey Gate, the entrance to the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, according to ABC News.
After the disruption of the president's speech, Nikoui, 51, was escorted out of the House chamber by Capitol Police, who charged him with crowding, obstructing, or incommoding Congress, The Post reported.
According to the outlet, the charge is a misdemeanor. Usually those charged are released after paying a $50 fine.
Mast told Newsmax earlier in the day, before the incident, that House Republicans would not abide by Speaker Mike Johnson's request to refrain from heckling if they believe he was lying during his speech.
"I wouldn't even call it heckling," Mast told Newsmax's "Wake Up America." "This is an opportunity for the president to come and speak. He has the opportunity to speak truthfully, and if he doesn't, he's going to hear about it."
Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., told The Post he has offered the White House private meetings with several Gold Star families to the White House. Those offers have been rebuffed, he said.
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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