Saudi king opens interfaith conference in Spain

Controversial cast
Some other Jewish officials invited to the conference are more controversial, including Rabbi David Weiss, whose group, Neturei Karta, objects to the creation of Israel on the grounds that it violates Jewish religious law.

At a 2006 gathering in Tehran hosted by hard-line Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Weiss made headlines by saying the number of Jews said to have been killed in the Holocaust was inflated.

Weiss was at one point scheduled to address this week's conference, but organizers said plans have changed. It was not immediately clear if Weiss would be attending the conference at all.

Also attending the opening ceremony were former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and American civil rights leader and ex-presidential candidate the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

While Spain is playing host to the conference, it has no formal role. The country considers itself a place where the three major religions once coexisted in harmony — though with rather large exceptions, including the Crusades to oust Muslims from Europe and the Inquisition, in which Jews and Muslims were persecuted and expelled.

In 2006, Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and his Turkish counterpart launched a program called the Alliance of Civilizations, which was meant to foster better understanding between the West and Muslim countries.

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