NO JEWS AT QATAR INTER-RELIGIOUS CONFERENCE

Indignant Israeli Rabbis Decline Qatar Invitation After Snub - Orly Halpern (Jerusalem Post)
Top Israeli Jewish religious leaders have refused to attend the Qatar interreligious conference opening in Doha Wednesday because they were not allowed to be on a panel or listed as participants on the program, said Rabbi David Rosen, the American Jewish Committee's Jerusalem-based International Director of Interreligious Affairs. "Due to pressure that was put on the Qataris from Islamic extremists against having any Jews, the [Qataris] communicated to the Foreign Ministry that, while the Israelis would be very welcome, they would not appear formally on the program or on the panels," said Rosen. Former Sephardi chief rabbi Bakshi-Doron, former Ashkenazi chief rabbi Meir Lau, and Rosen were the first Israelis to be invited to the annual two-day conference, but rejected the idea of attending unofficially.