"Secular Jews Must Respect the Religious"; The Saudi Blogger's Fiery Interview with Hidabroot

"For out of Zion shall go forth the law..." But how far will it reach? Even Hidabroot was surprised when a photo from Saudi Arabia was published showing Mohammed Saud, known to Israelis as 'the Saudi blogger', taking a selfie with a Hidabroot pamphlet from the Vayetze Torah portion. The Hidabrootpamphlet is not published in Arabic, but nothing frightens the Saudi blogger. We set out to follow Mohammed and hear about his interesting connection to Israel, Hidabroot, and Judaism.

"Only Afraid of Hashem"

When did you realize you love the Jewish people?

"I started loving Israel from the moment I saw what was happening on social networks worldwide. I realized all the news is biased and not true; no one cares about the truth as much as everything is influenced by interests and politics. This hurt me a lot, so I started connecting with Israelis on Facebook, where they talked to me about everything."

But you live in Saudi Arabia, not Israel. How is it you are not afraid of your environment?

"I only fear Hashem. My environment here in Saudi Arabia is wonderful, not everyone agrees with me or supports me, but they have the right to think what they want. I say my opinion and am not afraid of anyone."

Do you know there are religious and secular people in Israel?

"Of course I know. There are all sorts of sectors - left-wing, right-wing, and also people considered centrist who do not really know what to vote in elections. There are Haredim and religious people; the way I see it, many religious people are less strict about religion than the Haredim."

What would you like to say to secular people?

"I want to tell secular Jews living in Israel that they should thank Hashem that He gave them a country, and they must respect the religious people."

What would you like to say to the religious and Haredim?

"The religious and Haredim in Israel are very protective of the land of Israel. I want to tell them: 'Congratulations to you on the battle and the desire to build more and more, without stopping.'"

In Favor of Return to Faith

The Saudi blogger claims that to his understanding, as the entire world operates through the screen, it does not really matter where you physically sit. This leads to him being so directly familiar with the phenomenon of return to faith, despite the distance between the countries.

"The phenomenon of returning to faith is very important. I think it is very important to bring people to religion," he argues, "there are people who do not understand how good it is to have Shabbat, and it is important to open their eyes. By the way, on my Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, there is barely anything on Shabbat. Almost all of the right wing observes Shabbat, the left much less, and I am very bored on Shabbat when the right is not on the network, but I know it is very important that people are with their families."

Perhaps you will invite a Hidabroot rabbi to give a lecture in Saudi Arabia?

"One day, Inshallah."

And what do you say about the political situation in the country?

"A mess that never ends, every day there are different news items. I personally support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and I know he will be acquitted in court. Benny Gantz is a good man who should leave Yair Lapid and join Netanyahu."

Why don't you make aliyah to Israel?

"I am Saudi and happy in Riyadh, in my country. You will eventually be fine with a strong government that the right will establish, Inshallah."

In conclusion, there are so many shared interests between Israel and Saudi Arabia, so why don't they make a peace agreement?

"They are doing many things together that we do not know about. As I understand it, after there is progress with the Palestinians, the dream of peace between the countries can be realized."

What did two Haredim do in Mohammed Saud's home? Watch