Were they going with him to the Western Wall (I sure hope he wasn’t going)? Improperly dressed, disrespectful tourists aren’t welcome there.
Improperly dressed tourists are not welcome in St. Peter’s in Vatican City either. I saw the Swiss Guards turn away a man in shorts and a t-shirt. Luckily, the cruise ship had given us fair warning.
We visited Israel in 1994 and they did spell out no shorts or tank tops for the guys and conservative clothing for the gals in our group. Everyone ended up needing a hat, scarf or hood b/c the guys had to wear something at Jewish sites adn teh women had to cover their heads in some of the churches. I don’t remember what the rules were for the Dome of the Rock, other than no shoes. DH refused to go in b/c they charged $7 per person and we’d have had to take off our shoes as if we were on holy ground. As if! I still get a chuckle out of that.
Obama’s rules sound a lot more conservative.