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US Extends Visa Ban on Palestinian Officials Ahead of UN Assembly
Confirmed
In Short: The US State Department has extended visa sanctions on Palestinian Authority (PA) officials and members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), preventing Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas from attending the UN General Assembly in New York.
The US State Department has extended visa sanctions on Palestinian Authority (PA) officials and members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), citing their failure to comply with commitments made to the US, according to reports. This decision comes ahead of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), where Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was expected to address the 193-member body.
The visa restrictions, which prevent Abbas from traveling to New York, mark the second consecutive year in which he has been unable to attend the UNGA in person. The US State Department accused the PA of violating US law by pursuing international recognition of Palestinian statehood outside direct negotiations, taking its dispute with Israel to international courts, and providing payments to individuals labeled as convicted attackers and their families.
Critics argue that these visa restrictions breach the US obligation to allow individuals invited by the UN to travel to its headquarters in New York. Palestinian officials and UN human rights experts have also expressed their disapproval of the decision, which they believe undermines the prospects for peace.
The US decision has drawn criticism from Palestinian officials and UN human rights experts. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's speech this year was expected to focus on international recognition of Palestinian statehood and renewed momentum behind a two-state solution. However, the extended visa restrictions will prevent him from delivering his address in person.
The development comes after the United Kingdom, France, Canada, and other Western governments recognized Palestinian statehood. The US decision is part of a broader dispute with the Palestinian Authority over its actions and policies, and it highlights the ongoing tensions in the Middle East peace process.
What's confirmed
- "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 section 604(a)(1) of the MEPCA," the State Department said.
- Critics have argued that the visa restrictions breach the US obligation to allow individuals invited by the United Nations to travel to its headquarters in New York.
- The extended visa restrictions would prevent Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas from travelling to New York ahead of his address to the UN General Assembly next week, marking the second consecutive year in which he has been prevented from attending the UNGA in person.
What's still developing
- A German auxiliary bishop has said the Catholic Church “could afford” to ordain married men as priests while firmly rejecting demands for the ordination of women to the priesthood ahead of a crucial gathering of German bishops later this month.
- Palestinian officials have said decades of US-mediated talks have failed to end Israeli occupation and secure an independent Palestinian state.
- However, Washington has said it can deny visas for reasons linked to security, extremism and foreign policy.
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