Report: Anti-Semitism Removed from Saudi Textbooks

A January 30 report from The Washington Post stated that anti-Semitic rhetoric has been removed from Saudi Arabia’s textbooks.

The Post noted that in early 2020, the Saudis obtained a report from the Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Education (IMPACT-se) highlighting how their textbooks were still filled with anti-Semitism, homophobia, misogyny and intolerance toward other religious faiths outside of strict adherence to Sunni Islam. The Saudis have since taken efforts to reform their textbooks, such as removing various calls to “fight Jews,” praise for Islamic extremist martyrdom and supporting the death penalty for gays.

Marcus Sheff, who heads IMPACT-se, told the Post that the changes are “quite astonishing.” Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Washington Director of Internal Affairs David Weinberg, on the other hand, told the Post that while there has been progress with Saudi textbooks, the textbooks are still not friendly to Israel. Maps of the Middle East in the textbooks omit Israel altogether. “Old hatreds die hard,” he said.

ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt tweeted that the Post report is “a promising read about how Saudi Arabia is finally purging its textbooks of some of the hate and #antisemitism that has filled its pages for so long. But as @ADL’s @DavidAWeinberg tells us, there’s still work to be done.”

A promising read about how Saudi Arabia is finally purging its textbooks of some of the hate and #antisemitism that has filled its pages for so long. But as @ADL's @DavidAWeinberg tells us, there's still work to be done. https://t.co/ffbpRexiYg

— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) January 31, 2021

Middle East expert Avi Abraham Benlolo similarly tweeted, “I welcome the news that Saudi is removing #antisemitism and intolerant material from its textbook. Children are our future. We have to teach them respect, tolerance and kindness. Lets hope [this] momentum continues.”

I welcome the news that Saudi is removing #antisemitism and intolerant material from its textbook. Children are our future. We have to teach them respect, tolerance and kindness. Lets hope thos momentum continues ⁦@Saudi_Gazette⁩ ⁦ https://t.co/lsM0hEDTBd

— Avi Abraham Benlolo (@AviBenlolo) January 30, 2021

Ever since the Abraham Accords were forged, there has been speculation that Saudi Arabia will eventually normalize ties with Israel. Although relations have improved between the two countries, the Gulf Kingdom isn’t in any hurry to normalize ties with Israel. The Saudis have stated that the establishment of an official Palestinian state is a necessary prerequisite for any normalization to occur with Israel.