Trump Administration Blocks Palestinian Leaders From Attending U.n. Meeting In New York

Members of President Mahmoud Abbas' Palestinian government will beryllium incapable to recreation to nan United Nations General Assembly adjacent period aft Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked their visas.

The prohibition comes arsenic respective U.S. friends person declared they would recognize a Palestinian state astatine nan gathering of world leaders astatine nan U.N. office successful New York successful consequence to Israel’s escalating battle successful bluish Gaza, which intensified Friday aft nan state announced it had begun nan “initial stages” of its cognition successful nan famine-gripped area.

Headed by Abbas, who has not faced an predetermination successful almost 2 decades, the Palestinian Authority administers parts of nan Israeli-occupied West Bank. It has not governed successful Gaza since 2007 erstwhile nan Palestinian president's information forces were driven retired by nan Islamic militant group Hamas.

In June, Abbas wrote a missive to France’s president successful which he condemned nan Hamas onslaught and called connected hostages taken by nan militant group to beryllium released.

In a connection Friday, nan State Department said the Trump administration was reaffirming its “Commitment to Not Reward Terrorism,” and Rubio was revoking visas from nan Palestinian Authority (PA) and nan umbrella Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

Before they tin beryllium considered “partners for peace,” nan connection said that they “must consistently repudiate terrorism,” including nan Hamas-led panic attacks connected Oct. 7, 2023, which saw 1,200 group killed and astir 250 group taken hostage, and “end incitement to coercion successful education.”

It added that nan PA must extremity its efforts “to unafraid nan unilateral nickname of a conjectural Palestinian state.”

“Both steps materially contributed to Hamas’s refusal to merchandise its hostages, and to nan breakdown of nan Gaza ceasefire talks,” nan connection read, adding that nan PA’s imperishable U.N. ngo successful New York would not beryllium affected by nan restrictions.

Under a 1947 U.N. “headquarters agreement,” nan U.S. is mostly required to let entree for overseas diplomats to nan U.N. successful New York. After nan U.S. refused to rumor a visa to PLO leader Yasser Arafat successful 1988, The U.N. General Assembly held a gathering that twelvemonth successful Geneva alternatively of New York truthful he could reside it.

Washington has said it tin contradict visas for security, extremism and overseas argumentation reasons. Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar welcomed nan State Department’s decision.

But Riyad Mansour, nan Palestinian ambassador to nan U.N. told reporters Friday that arsenic acold arsenic he knew, “the caput of our delegation is President Mahmoud Abbas, and he is coming to correspond nan authorities of Palestine and nan Palestinian group successful that conference.”

On nan visa revocations, he added, “We will spot precisely what it intends and really it applies to immoderate of our delegation, and we will respond accordingly.”

Several European overseas ministers criticized nan determination up of a gathering successful Copenhagen, Denmark connected Saturday. A U.N. General Assembly “cannot beryllium taxable to immoderate restrictions connected access,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told reporters.

France, nan United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia are each expected to formally admit a Palestinian authorities astatine nan assembly, a move nan Trump management has opposed. The authorities of Palestine is presently recognized by 147 of nan U.N.’s 193 personnel states.

The visa revocations came amid mounting world anger complete starvation successful Gaza aft much than 22 months of warfare which has seen much than 63,000 group killed, according to wellness officials successful nan enclave.

After launching a caller battle connected nan northbound of nan enclave earlier this week, Israel said Friday that Gaza City had go a vulnerable combat zone.

The cognition astir nan Strip's largest metropolis is expected to displace thousands and aft Israel carried retired dense strikes successful nan area connected Friday residents, galore of whom person been displaced respective times during nan war, started to flee. As tanks precocious successful respective areas, by day Gaza City’s streets were crowded pinch recently displaced families.

Um Warda said she could not slumber arsenic shelling shook nan crushed beneath her, forcing her to fly “with nary food, nary water.”

“We don’t moreover cognize if we are live aliases dead,” she said. “I person nary thought wherever we will spell aliases what will hap to us.”

Nearby, Ammar Ahmad Abu Warda, 21 and recently married, carried what belongings he could connected his shoulders but he said he had mislaid way of his woman and children.

“My full life is gone,” he said. “This is my land, my location — some are gone, but I will stay.”