TEL AVIV – Israeli journalists were barred from boarding the press plane accompanying Air Force One from the U.S. to Saudi Arabia, having been denied visas to enter the kingdom in order to cover President Donald Trump’s visit.
Israeli-American journalist Orly Azoulay, who writes for the Hebrew-language daily Yedioth Ahronoth, and Gil Tamary of Israel’s Channel 10, also a dual citizen, were slated to cover Trump’s first trip overseas as president and had been approved by the White House to join the press plane, the Forward reported. Last Wednesday, the two were informed that the Saudi embassy refused to grant them visas because of their affiliation with Israeli media outlets.
American-born Dan Raviv, a Washington-based reporter for Tel Aviv-based i24News, was also denied a Saudi visa — despite having visited the country in the past while working for CBS News.
Azoulay too has been to the kingdom in the past, on a 2007 visit with then-president George W. Bush. She said that in her view the Saudi refusal to grant visas this time around was “an act of humiliation aimed at President Trump.”
Tamary noted that the move runs counter to the increasingly popular view that the kingdom’s hostility toward Israel is thawing. “Everyone is saying that the Saudis are changing, but when a reporter for an Israeli outlet wants to join the U.S. president’s press corps, he is not allowed on the plane,” he said.
On Wednesday afternoon, Azoulay tweeted at President Trump, “Saudis refused me a visa to come on your trip, b/c I am an Israeli reporter,” before adding, “take me on AF1!”
The White House did not respond to her request.
In 2014, Saudi Arabia announced that Jews would be allowed to obtain work visas in the kingdom. However, the ban on Israelis remained unchanged.
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