Democrat assails removal of Israel from Trump travel video
WASHINGTON -- A senior House Democrat is assailing a video posted by the U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia that omits mention of President Donald Trump's upcoming visit to Israel.
Rep. Eliot Engel says in a letter sent Monday to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson that the embassy's editing implies the United States accepts Saudi Arabia's refusal to recognize Israel as a state. Israel and Saudi Arabia do not have formal diplomatic relations.
Saudi Arabia will be Trump's initial stop on his first foreign trip as president, followed by visits to Israel and the Vatican.
Engel is the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee. He says the U.S. has long fought efforts by Middle East nations to "delegitimize" the Jewish state. He says he's appalled by the embassy's "incomplete and misleading video."
