UK Journalist Ordered To Remove Palestine T-Shirt…In Abu Dhabi Airport

A UK-based journalist was ordered to remove her “Palestine” t-shirt or be denied boarding on her Etihad flight at Abu Dhabi Airport, a reminder of the lack of free speech in the Gulf emirate.

UK Journalist Finds There Are No Free Speech Rights In Abu Dhabi Airport

Leyla Hamed was questioned over her “Palestine” t-shirt, which she claims she always wears when traveling to show her support for the Palestinian cause and opposition to Israel.

After ignoring a more polite request to remove her shirt, she was told she could not fly without changing her top. When asked to justify why she had to remove the shirt, she was told it might make other passengers “uncomfortable.”

Those who know me know I always wear Palestine t-shirts when I’m traveling. They have become my airport outfit.

I just came back from South Korea and Japan. No problems at all — quite the opposite.

A Korean photographer even asked me for some photos in Jeju when wearing this. pic.twitter.com/cVIGGsv1VO

— Leyla Hamed (@leylahamed) September 26, 2024

She said the reason was because the logo was written in Arabic (it literally says Palestine) and it was not allowed at the airport.

Then she said it could make other airport passengers feel “uncomfortable”.

I have no words. pic.twitter.com/kM6sBX87Y9

— Leyla Hamed (@leylahamed) September 26, 2024

As View From The Wing notes, all public protest is banned in the United Arab Emirates. So is public criticism of the government, its policies, and officials (including the monarch). There’s some irony that this happened in a “Muslim” country, but its rulers view public protest as a threat to stability.

People ask me all the time why I leave hateful comments up on my blog and the answer is simple: the answer to speech is more speech. Rather than hide from the hate and ignorance that exists in this world, whitewashing it as if it does not exist, I prefer to leave it for everyone to see…and that is not even a commercial decision (I think the liberal comments policy here turns more readers away than draws them in), but a moral conviction.

I don’t support Hamed’s point of view and think she displays bigotry by complaining about the in-flight map:

I’m traveling with Etihad Airways (owned by Abu Dhabi wealth fund ADQ) and this is what I see pic.twitter.com/gNbcoCJj5y

— Leyla Hamed (@leylahamed) September 26, 2024

(she should fly JetBlue instead…)

Is she really upset that Tel Aviv is displayed? Bigot indeed.

But hateful bigots should be allowed to voice their opinions too, especially in public places like airports.

It’s not for me to tell the United Arab Emirates or Abu Dhabi how to regulate speech…but the effect of refusing to let Hamed wear her innocuous “Palestine” t-shirt was a whole lot of worldwide negative media scrutiny. Hamed may not come out looking good, but neither do the officials in Abu Dhabi…

Finally, I cannot help but remark here that I am heartened to see Israel expand its defensive efforts to Lebanon and do not think, at least not yet, that the Middle East is spiraling out of control. Rather, I believe this is a reckoning long overdue. Enough of the days of rockets launched into Israel from the Iranian-backed terrorist organization we call Hezbollah. It’s time to eliminate that threat once and for all. Don’t think that is possible? Look at Germany and Japan today. Let Iran be afraid that if it does not stop funding terrorism, it will be the next target. Not with ground troops, but with the sort of pager and walkie-talkie-like maneuvers of 21st-century war that can inflict immense damage and fear while greatly reducing the risk of collateral damage.