Saudi school curricula undergo major changes to references to Jerusalem and Israel

The Saudi education system is continuing to soften its treatment of Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in school curricula, Hebrew-language newspaper Maariv reported.

The newspaper cited a new report by research institute IMPACT-se, which examined Saudi school curricula from 2024 to 2026. It said Saudi Arabia had removed “hostile statements” and made changes to content relating to Israel, Jews and Jerusalem as part of the reform drive adopted by the ruling family under Vision 2030.

The report said one of the most notable changes was made to the Arabic-language textbook for Year 11. The 2023-2024 edition included the sentence, “Muslims will not give up Jerusalem”, but the sentence was removed entirely from editions for the 2024-2025 academic year and onwards.

The institute said the sentence had portrayed Muslim control or presence in Jerusalem as being under threat, and that its removal eliminated a politically and religiously contentious reference to the city.

READ: Saudi Arabia issues warning over ‘potential danger’ in Jazan province