U.S. denies visas to Palestinian delegation for 2nd year in a row for UN assembly in New York
A Palestinian delegation, including Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, has been denied U.S. visas to attend next weeks UN General Assembly. (Mohammed Torokman/Reuters)Social SharingThe Trump administration has denied visas for a high-level Palestinian delegation to attend an annual meeting of world leaders at the United Nations for the second year in a row.
The U.S. State Department said Wednesday that Palestinian officials, including Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, had failed to live up to their commitments under previous agreements to seek peace with Israel.
In a statement, the department said the Palestinian Authority had continued to pursue legal action against Israel at the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court (ICC) and kept paying stipends to the families of prisoners convicted of attacks against Israelis. It also mentioned officials tied to the Palestine Liberation Organization, or PLO.
"As a consequence of their failure to reform, contrary to their commitments to the United States, and their ongoing activities that undermine the prospects for peace, the United States will extend sanctions that deny visas to PLO members and PA officials" in accordance with standing U.S. law, the department said.
U.S. blocks Palestinian leadership visas for UN General Assembly
Palestinian officials say that decades of U.S.-mediated talks have failed to end Israeli occupation and secure an independent Palestinian state.
Under a 1947 UN "headquarters agreement," the U.S. is generally required to allow access for foreign diplomats to the UN in New York. However, Washington has said it can deny visas for security, extremism and foreign policy reasons.
The move is the latest by the Trump administration to restrict visas and it further signals the close U.S. alliance with Israel, which has faced international isolation over its war in Gaza following the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas. A fragile, U.S.-brokered ceasefire took hold in October, but Israel has continued to carry out strikes in the Palestinian territory.
It also comes as the Trump administration has launched a campaign to dismantle the ICC, accusing it of trying to unfairly prosecute U.S. and Israeli soldiers for alleged crimes in Afghanistan, Iraq and Gaza. Israel and the United States are not members of the global tribunal.
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Domestically, the Trump administration has attempted to deport pro-Palestinian foreign protesters, threatened a funding freeze for universities over protests and enforced social media screening for immigrants.
The Palestinian Authority, which represents the Palestinian people at the United Nations, where the delegation is officially known as the State of Palestine, is not a full member and has no vote in the General Assembly. They are an observer state holding the same status as the Vatican.
Despite the visa denials, the Palestinians will still be represented at next week's high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly by their diplomats who are already accredited to the United Nations. Last year, Abbas appeared by video.
