The United States has denied Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas a visa to attend next week’s United Nations General Assembly in New York, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The State Department also announced that it would deny visas to members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and officials from the Palestinian Authority (PA), citing what it described as their failure to meet reform commitments and activities that undermine prospects for peace.
Although Abbas was not named in the statement, a source familiar with the case confirmed to AFP that the Palestinian leader was covered by the measure.
The decision mirrors a move by the Trump administration last year, when Abbas was also denied entry to the United States and was forced to address the UN General Assembly by video instead.
In its latest statement, the State Department said the PLO and PA had “once again, failed to live up to their commitments”.
It accused the organisations of supporting actions at international bodies that contradict previous commitments, including efforts to pursue the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through the International Criminal Court (ICC) and International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Washington also accused the PLO and PA of seeking to bypass negotiations through efforts to secure unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, while continuing to pay stipends to terrorists and glorify terrorism and terrorists in public statements and school textbooks.
The decision places Washington at odds with several countries, including France, which recognised a Palestinian state at the United Nations last year.
A total of 142 UN member states endorsed the move following a conference on a two-state solution co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia.
The visa decision comes as violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians has intensified in the occupied West Bank in recent months.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, while violence in the territory has increased sharply since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023, which triggered the war in Gaza.
According to an AFP tally based on Palestinian Health Ministry figures, Israeli soldiers and settlers have killed at least 1,109 Palestinians, including fighters and civilians, in the West Bank since the attack.
The Hamas-led assault killed more than 1,200 people, while the ensuing Israeli military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 73,700 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which operates under Hamas authority and whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.
The international community has expressed concern over the escalating violence, although the United States has largely remained quiet on the issue. Washington has said only that it opposes any annexation of Palestinian territory.
