we get more from cnn's becky anderson. >> it is the gold embossed invitation seldom refused. a dinner date at the white house. yet, of the six arab countries invited to sit down with the president, only two are sending their heads of state, qatar and q 8. ill health was always going to keep oman and the aue sheikh ka alisha fa away. the biggest no show is saudi arabia's king salman aziz. saudi officials say he's staying in riyadh to oversee a cease-fire supposed to go in effect in yemen tuesday. the white house has sought to downplay any rift with riyadh or the other gulf countries, noting that saudi's crown prince and his defense minister would be at the meetings but that hasn't stopped speculation that monarch is snubbing the president, but a closer look at those who will be in the room may paint a more nuanced picture. the gulf region is currently undergoing a generational transfer of power. meaning leaders like the saudi crown prince mohammed defense minister mohammed bin sallman or the premier are key power brokers who shape jcc relations with the west now and into the f

cnn's becky anderson is monitoring the latest for us from abu dhabi. are very concerned about the closed trial. >> reporter: that is right. the first session this morning is over. he was arrested along with his wife and two of their friends last july christine. others were released on bail after a couple of months. jason remained in custody and held in solitary confinement in the notorious prison. it was possibly he was held on "parts unknown." but by april of this year it was clear the charges were more serious than initially thought. the establishment and jew jewdischery claims there is no fair back up to the claims and process so far. what we do know is the judge assigned to the case is known to be close to the intelligence operators and accused of bringing down the harsh sentences in the past. perhaps this is the crux of the matter. jason in a wider power struggle in tehran with the government and president rouhani and hard line evidence as he tries to strike this nuclear deal with the west by the end of next month. they know having an iranian-amer

we learn more from cnn's becky anderson from abu dhabi. >> since qatar won the bid to host the worldp in 2022, the tournament has been mired in controversy. first it was the heat. then the extensive allegations of bribery. but what is most worrisome is the human cost associated with this event. workers are dying on the job in the race to complete these multibillion dollar sites associated with the world cup. the numbers are difficult to pin down. but a report by the international trade union confederation for example, has estimated 1,200 death ses so fa. with 4,000 additional worker deaths by 20-22. many experts say those numbers vastly underplay the reality. well in the face of stinging criticism about working conditions and aabuse, the labo ministry pledged reform. those helping to build the country deserve to be protected against exploitation. the migrant workers as we speak are toiling behind the scenes in the heat and dust of the desert. even as this entire project has once again in the spotlight after the swiss authorities announced a criminal investigation into the awarding of

becky anderson, cnn, abu dhabi. >> so is it a snub? not a snub? is the saudi king sending a message to the white house? if this is not a snub, there certainly does seem to be an attendance problem. leaders from four of the since nations invited to the summit will be no-shows. >> i think that's not a coincidence. you've heard of the nondenial denial, this is the nonsnub snub. there was a very influential adviser to the monarchy that said this isn't quite a snub. it's just, but there's definitely a sub textual thing here for what, six hides of government have decided to send underlings. that's very clear. that sh coordinated and strategic. they're saying forget about the iranian nuclear program and the negotiations over that. we fear and we suspect that the united states has embarked upon a policy with the islamic republic. they are looking to bring an iran in from the cold and erect a new post, post war condominium with iran, and this aggravates us to no en, because we see iranian hed iranian -- >> the u.s. is going to have a very hard time trying

cnn's becky anderson is live in abu dhabi with the very latest for us. becky. >> reporter: michaela the shameful acts of injustice continue without end, those the words of "the washington post" executive editor in a statement released. the head of what is this first session of jason's trial on charges of espionage. it was a relatively short session. no date has been released for the continuation. so the facts in this case very murky. the 39-year-old was arrested in july last year along with his wife and others. they were later released on bail but jason has been in prison at times in solitary confinement since july. why? well for months it wasn't clear, but by april this year he was formally accused of spying and illegally gathering classified information about iran and passing it onto washington. now, let me tell you the judge assigned to this case is known to be very close to the intelligence operators and has been accused in the past of passing down politically motivated sentences. which begs this question is jason a pawn in a wider power struggle goin