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Kennedy claims Arabs don't produce science; critics cite Nobel winners

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 27 Oct, 19:32 · Archive

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Arabs do not produce science or win major prizes; critics pointed to Arab Nobel Peace Prize winners.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made broad assertions about Arab contributions to science and literature at a Republican campaign event in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Monday. 'There's 500 million Arabs in the world and yet they don't produce science,' Kennedy said. 'They don't win the Nobel Prize. They don't win the Fields Prize. They don't win the Wolf Prize. They don't produce literature.'

The comments were widely condemned overnight as untrue and racially biased. Kennedy made the remarks while campaigning in a state with a large Arab American population. An HHS representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Critics quickly pointed to Arab winners of major scientific and peace prizes. Egyptian law scholar Mohamed El Baradei, a diplomat and vice-president of Egypt, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005 alongside the International Atomic Energy Agency for efforts to prevent nuclear energy from being used for military purposes. Tawakkol Karman, a Yemeni journalist, politician and human rights activist, was a co-recipient of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, becoming the first Yemeni and first Arab woman to win the award.

Kennedy claims Arabs don't produce science; critics cite Nobel winners
Image: News4Jax

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In this story: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. · Mohamed El Baradei · Tawakkol Karman · Egypt · Yemen · International Atomic Energy Agency

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log