Jews ‘Safer in Saudi Arabia’ Than on US College Campuses, Says Trump’s Son-in-Law – News18

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Last Updated: October 30, 2023, 10:05 IST

Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)

Jared Kushner, former senior advisor to the president during the administration of his father-in-law, former President Donald Trump, speaks about the Abraham Accords during an event at the Trump affiliated America First Policy Institute in Washington, September 12, 2022. (Reuters)

Ever since the start of the Israel-Hamas war earlier this month, college campuses across the us have witnessed protests and demonstrations

Jared Kushner, former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and ex-White House adviser has claimed that Saudi Arabia is a safer place for Jews than college campuses in the US. Kushner’s sharp remarks come amid an increase in a wave of antisemitic incidents across the United States in which pro-Palestinian protesters take their anger out on Jewish students on campus.

“One of the ironies is that, as an American Jew, you’re safer in Saudi Arabia right now than you are on a college campus like Columbia University,” Kushner, who is Jewish, said during an interview, according to the New York Post. “They allowed me to speak freely,” Kushner, 42, said of the Saudis after returning from a trip to Saudi Arabia, where he spoke at a conference.

Ever since the start of the Israel-Hamas war earlier this month, college campuses around the country have witnessed protests and demonstrations mostly in support of Palestinians. Last week, Columbia University was forced to postpone its Giving Day fundraising as its campus continues to be roiled by tensions in the Middle East. In another such incident, Jewish students, at Cooper Union in New York City last Wednesday were forced to remain inside a library while protesters screamed at them from outside.

Kushner, the scion of a wealthy Jewish American family, has been close with the Saudis, since his time in office along with the Trump administration. After he departed the Trump-era White House, his private equity firm received a USD 2 billion investment from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, the US newspaper said.

In September 2020, Kushner reportedly played a role in a key diplomatic breakthrough, when the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain agreed to normalise ties with Israel. However, a deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel has remained elusive. Despite this, he remained optimistic that Riyadh might still play ball.

“Yes, I believe they would like to move forward with the deal with America and with Israel,” Kushner said when asked about whether the normalisation in relations could still happen. “The deal that’s being discussed isn’t just a partnership with Israel. It’s also deepening their ties with America,” he said of Saudi Arabia. “We have to keep in mind that, if America is not close to Saudi Arabia, then [the Saudis] will go in the other direction to China. And so I think that the topic is being discussed,” he added.