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The United States has revoked visas for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and about 80 other officials, preventing them from attending next month’s U.N. General Assembly in New York, the State Department confirmed Friday.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization of undermining peace efforts by pursuing unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state and advancing legal cases against Israel. He said Palestinian representatives already stationed in New York may still attend under the U.N. Headquarters Agreement.
The move, welcomed by Israel, is highly unusual. The U.N. agreement stipulates that Washington should not block entry of foreign officials “irrespective of relations” with the U.S. A U.N. spokesperson said the matter was being discussed with the State Department.
Abbas’ office called the visa revocations a violation of international law, noting that Palestine holds permanent observer status at the U.N. The decision comes as France, the U.K., Canada and Australia push for recognition of Palestinian statehood at the upcoming assembly, a step strongly opposed by Israel and the U.S.
Israel’s government has rejected a two-state solution, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying recognition would reward Hamas for its October 7 attack that killed about 1,200 people in Israel. The ensuing Israeli military campaign has left more than 63,000 dead in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Currently, 147 of 193 U.N. member states recognize Palestine as a state.
With information from BBC.
