Karmel Mall Owner Claims Rep. Omar's Return Signals Somali Business Success

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., visited the Karmel Mall of Somalia on Friday, marking her first public appearance since federal agents raided her Washington, D.C., home on Oct. 12. She spent a large portion of the day at the four-story building, which her owner, Basim Sabri, calls the largest Somali mall in the world. The visit occurred just after Omar and State Attorney General Keith Ellison voted early at a Minneapolis polling station.

The complex operates differently from typical American shopping centers. It contains 900 vendor spaces that resemble storage units rather than retail storefronts. Shop owners lift metal garage doors to signal they are open, and strict business hours are not enforced. The facility serves as a commercial hub for the local Somali community, featuring shops that sell prepaid electronic SIM cards for overseas calling.

Money transfer services are prominent throughout the building. Stores like World Direct Link Corp. advertise services for sending funds to Somalia, Kenya, and other East African nations. Several travel agencies offer arrangements for trips from the United States to the Middle East and East Africa. Traditional Somali clothiers and barbers also occupy space within the complex, where English serves as the second language.

Omar dined in the mall’s dining area, which is decorated with Somali, Palestinian, and American flags hanging at the same height. The ceiling of the food vendor section is painted light blue with a white star. Somali cafes there sell traditional foods such as sambusas, a flaky fried pastry, and bijaye, a fried cornmeal dish. Many patrons ate with their hands, while Omar and her companions used forks.

Sabri, who is of Gaza origin, granted media access to the mall. He described the property as an incubator where businesses start and eventually expand to larger spaces. Although the mall is not explicitly reserved for Somalis, an implicit understanding exists that it serves that community. Outsiders, particularly those with cameras, are often scrutinized by security guards and patrons. Sabri previously banned Democratic Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey from the premises in February 2024 after Frey vetoed an Israel-Gaza ceasefire resolution.

Sabri has a long relationship with Omar and knew her late father, a rumored Somali National Army colonel. During his time outside the mall, Sabri discussed his background growing up poor in the Middle East before moving to Minneapolis to study. He has since built a real estate empire that includes several apartment complexes near the mall, which are occupied mostly by Somalis. He sends his son to Institut Le Rosey in Switzerland, a school with an annual tuition of about $184,000.

The mall owner also faced legal issues in 2005 when he was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for bribing a local Minneapolis public official. He mentioned his time at the Federal Correctional Institution in Leavenworth, Kansas, during an interview. Sabri characterized the mall as evidence of assimilation and the American dream for his foreign-born tenants. He stated that Somalis are intelligent business individuals who are prospering in the community.

Security surrounded Omar and Ellison during the lunch. Sabri posed for a photo with the congresswoman, Ellison, and an unidentified man. The owner and the state attorney general shared a brief conversation during the midday meal. Sabri described the atmosphere as one where people are making a good living and opening businesses that tend to be successful.