U.S. Diplomats End Saudi Arabia Trip After Jewish Chair Told to Remove Kippah
U.S. diplomats visiting Saudi Arabia last week cut their trip short after a Saudi official asked the Jewish chair to remove his kippah, the organization announced Monday.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom — or USCIRF — left during a visit Tuesday to the Diriyah UNESCO World Heritage Site in Riyadh, after the organization’s chair Rabbi Abraham Cooper was told to remove his religious head covering.
“No one should be denied access to a heritage site, especially one intended to highlight unity and progress, simply for existing as a Jew,” said Cooper.
“Saudi Arabia is in the midst of encouraging change under its 2030 vision. However, especially in a time of raging anti-semitism, being asked to remove my kippah made it impossible for us from USCIRF to continue our visit,” Cooper added.
“We note, with particular regret, that this happened to a representative of a U.S. government agency promoting religious freedom,” he continued. “USCIRF looks forward to continuing conversations with the Saudi government about how to address the systemic issues that led to this troubling incident.”
USCIRF was touring the site Tuesday, as part of their official visit to Saudi Arabia, when officials requested that Cooper, who is an Orthodox Jewish Rabbi, remove his kippah while at the site and anytime he was in public. When Cooper indicated he would not comply, the delegation was escorted off the premises.
“Saudi officials’ request for Chair Cooper to remove his kippah was stunning and painful,” said USCIRF Vice Chair Frederick Davie. “It directly contradicted not only the government’s official narrative of change but also genuine signs of greater religious freedom in the Kingdom that we observed firsthand.”
