The Times of Israel reports: Saudi Arabia kicked off a world chess tournament Tuesday amid controversy over the kingdom denying visas to players from Israel and barring from attending.
Unlike Israel, players from Qatar and Iran, which have strained ties with Saudi Arabia, have been granted visas to participate in the tournament.
However, Qatari players will not compete in the championship because Qatar’s chess federation said organizers demanded that the players not display the Qatari flag during the competition.
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