LONDON, 5 October - A Houston-bound commercial flight from Chicago was about to take off when the pilot ordered the passengers to disembark. In the ensuing confusion, the pilot said he would not fly with any passenger who was holding a Saudi passport.
This was not an isolated incident. Such humiliating experiences have been reported from several airports across the US in the wake of the Sept.11 attacks.
After enjoying a long period of preferential treatment, Saudis have now become the target of prejudice, particularly in airports and hotels.
This is why Interior Minister Prince Naif asserted at a recent press conference that the Kingdom would not tolerate bad treatment of its citizens in either Europe or America.
Soon after the Sept. 11 attacks, the American public did not seem concerned about the nationality of the terrorists, although the media pointed an accusing finger in the general direction of all Arabs or Afghans.
But after the Wall Street Journal stressed an alleged "Saudi link" to the attack, public opinion began to turn against Saudis as a whole.
This sudden fear of Saudis triggered rumors about how Saudi citizens were being denied rooms in hotels or seats on aircraft.
Karen Sobell, spokeswoman for the Sheraton, told Arab News that "we don't turn down any Saudi customers, although they have been instructed by the authorities to inform them of the presence of guests of certain countries. She added that she "cannot specify those nationalities. "
The US was the preferred destination of most Saudis, who spend $4 billion there annually.
An official of a New York four-star hotel said "there is no Saudi staying in the hotel at the moment and all their September bookings have been canceled."
The number of Saudi customers dwindled considerably this fall, according to American travel and tourism sources.
A large number of students, who were either on vacation or left in the wake of the attacks, have now decided not to return to their US universities. Twenty members of the Bin Laden family also left on a private plane to some other destination.
Before Sept. 11, Saudis were highly welcomed in the US, because people believed that Saudis were rich and friendly. Now, the situation has been dramatically reversed.
A Saudi working in the US, who does not want his name published, said: "We have become the most hated people in the land. It was Iranians 20 years ago. Americans could not, then, differentiate between the supporters and the opponents of Khomaini. About 10 years ago it was the turn of the Iraqis. Americans did not understand that most Iraqis hated Saddam. Now it is Saudis' turn, because a few suspected terrorists carried Saudi passports."
According to travel and tourism operators in Riyadh and Jeddah, the American missions are demanding a "personal interview" with the Saudis who apply for US visa.
"This is the first time since 1990 they are asking us to bring along Saudis for personal interviews," said a tourism operator.
Previously, the embassy needed just a passport to complete the formalities, he added.
However, the American Embassy insists that it has not made any changes to its visa regulations.
The Chicago Tribune published a report accusing the officials of the Immigration and Naturalization Service of being lax toward holders of Saudi passports. It said that officials treated Saudi citizens better than the citizens of the European Union countries, or Japan.
In an apparent reaction to the report the authorities have now started to observe more closely Saudi passport holders.
According to an official of the INS, "We don't know which passport is original or which one is forged. Our new measures are only a precaution and applicable to a number of nationalities." The official also said she could not confirm or deny reports stating that the residence status of all Saudis living in US is being reviewed.
The FBI has also requested the cooperation of the treasury department to help it identify and monitor all accounts and investment funds related to Saudis or Saudi projects.
Over 100 editorials against Saudi Arabia, apart from numerous articles, have appeared in the US media since the attack. An article in the Herald Tribune even suggested that Washington should review its relations with Riyadh.
