Why Did U.S. Embassy Scrub Israel From Saudi Announcement Of Trump Trip?

Rep. Eliot Engel Image by Getty Images

By Nathan Guttman May 9, 2017

Congressman Eliot Engel has criticized a State Department video announcing Trump’s upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia for not mentioning that Trump will visit Israel on the same trip.

In his announcement, Trump listed the countries he will be visiting, including Saudi Arabia, Israel, and the Vatican. But the video aimed at the Saudi audience cut out any mention of Israel.

The video has since been removed and can no longer be retrieved online.

In a letter to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Engel wrote that he is “appalled that the US Embassy in Saudi Arabia disingenuously posted this incomplete and misleading video.”

The National Jewish Democratic Council called the video “shocking” and said that it’s “no way to treat such a cherished ally.”

Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected] or on Twitter @nathanguttman

Nathan Guttman, staff writer, was the Forward’s Washington bureau chief. He joined the staff in 2006 after serving for five years as Washington correspondent for the Israeli dailies Haaretz and The Jerusalem Post. In Israel, he was the features editor for Ha’aretz and chief editor of Channel 1 TV evening news. He was born in Canada and grew up in Israel. He is a graduate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.