This man likes Nikki Haley so much, he will name his baby after her
U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley's criticism of Syria hasn't gone unnoticed by one fan in the Middle East.
Fox News reports Rezgar Ramadan, a Syrian Kurd and opponent of the government of President Bashar Assad, wants to name his new baby after Haley.
"Nikki Haley fights a lot for the human rights, and speaking out against Russia, who have been committing a lot of crimes here in Syria,” Ramadan, a pharmacist, told Fox.
Ramadan's wife Newroz has not yet given birth. If the baby turns out to be a boy, he says he plans to name him after former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
This isn't the first time the couple have passed their love of the United States on to their children. The Ramadans reacted to President Donald Trump's election by legally changing their 7-year-old son Mustafa's name to "Trump" because, they say, the boy bears a resemblance to the president.
The family lives in Kobane, a northern Syrian town held by U.S.-supported Kurdish forces fighting both Assad's Syrian government — recently targeted by the United States in a missile strike — and fighters from the Islamic State terrorist group.
Haley has criticized the Syrian regime at the U.N. for its use of chemical weapons. Prior to the April 13 missile strike, Haley denounced Assad in the Security Council for a gas attack on the Damascus suburb of Douma.
“Let’s be clear: Assad’s most recent use of poison gas against the people of Douma was not his first, second, third or even 49th use of chemical weapons,” Haley said. “The United States estimates that Assad has used chemical weapons in the Syrian war at least 50 times. Public estimates are as high as 200.”
Haley also has used her U.N. perch to criticize Russia, a steadfast ally of Assad. Last week, Haley announced a new round of sanctions against the Russian government, only to have the Trump administration walk back the announcement amid criticism of Haley from some other Trump officials.
Haley's notoriety in the Middle East shows how high the former S.C. governor's profile has become as a spokesperson for the Trump administration. She has emerged as a megaphone for — and, sometimes, interpreter of — Trump's foreign policy decisions.
This story was originally published April 23, 2018 at 1:10 PM with the headline "This man likes Nikki Haley so much, he will name his baby after her."