Reporters from major news services were barred from traveling aboard Air Force One for President Trump’s high-stakes trip through the Middle East — an unprecedented move that was slammed by the White House Correspondents’ Association.

Elsewhere, state-backed funds from Qatar were part of a $6 billion funding round for Trump adviser Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI, and a fund from Qatar is also invested in the private equity firm of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

The White House broke its silence on the backlash since it blocked the Associated Press, Reuters, and Bloomberg from President Donald Trump’s trip to the Middle East. Trump left for Saudi Arabia on Monday with a host of press aboard Air Force One,

The White House Correspondents Association issued a sharply worded statement Monday condemning what it called an “unprecedented exclusion” of wire service journalists from Air Force One as President Donald Trump travels to the Middle East.