'Jews safer in Saudi Arabia right now than on US college campuses': Jared Kushner

Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law and former senior adviser, praised Saudi Arabia and said it is a safer place for Jews than some college campuses in the US. Kushner, who is Jewish himself, made these remarks amid an increase in a wave of anti-Semitic incidents across the United States. “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 said on “Sunday Morning Futures.” “They allowed me to speak freely,” he added. Across campuses in the US, some students have demanded explicit and strong condemnations of the attacks by Hamas, who stormed from the blockaded Gaza Strip into nearby Israeli towns, killing and abducting civilians and soldiers. Others have sought acknowledgement of Palestinian suffering plus condemnation of the killing of Palestinian civilians in Israeli airstrikes that have flattened buildings and homes in Gaza and forced many to evacuate. Last week, Columbia University saw two groups of hundreds of students face off in duelling pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrations. University officials had to block public access to the New York City campus as a safety measure. Supporters of Palestinians, many of whom wore face masks to hide their identities, held signs in a grassy area near a library that read “Free Palestine” and “To Exist is to Resist.” Similarly, Jewish students at the Cooper Union in New York City last Wednesday were forced to remain inside a library while protesters screamed at them from outside. With inputs from agencies