PA president’s office urges US to reinstate visa
President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas’s office has urged the US government to reverse its unusual decision to revoke his visa.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio rescinded the visas of Abbas and 80 other officials before next month’s annual high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly.
“We call upon the American administration to reverse its decision. This decision will only increase tension and escalation,” Palestinian presidential spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh told The Associated Press in Ramallah.
“We have been in contact since yesterday with Arab and foreign countries, especially those directly concerned with this issue. This effort will continue around the clock.”
He urged other countries to put pressure on the Trump administration to reverse the decision, notably the countries that have organised a high-level conference on September 22 about reviving efforts for a two-state solution in the Middle East. The conference is co-hosted by France and Saudi Arabia.
Belgium says US move to reject Palestinian visas a ‘blow to diplomacy’
Belgium’s Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot has called the move by the US to deny visas to Palestinian representatives to the UN “deeply regrettable” and a “blow to democracy”.
In a statement on X, Prevot said: “At a moment when there is a renewed momentum towards a two-state solution – with concrete commitments being made and international support growing – hindering the Palestinian voice is not only unjust, it is counterproductive.”
He added that “the path to peace demands more dialogue, not less”.
The US (and UK) has always talked about what to do with Palestine while ignoring any input from Palestinians. But now they fear the rest of the world has actually started listening to Palestinians.
Spanish PM says US visa denial to Palestinian officials ‘unjust’
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has said a US move to deny visas to Palestinian officials intending to travel to a UN gathering in New York is “unjust”.
“Palestine has the right to make its voice heard in the United Nations and in all international forums,” Sanchez said in a post on X.
Sanchez said he had spoken to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas “to express Spain’s firm support” over the matter.
Abbas is one of about 80 Palestinian officials affected by the US decision to deny and revoke their visas, preventing him from attending a gathering of the UN General Assembly where several countries are set to recognise Palestine as a state next month.
Abbas has addressed the General Assembly for many years and generally leads the Palestinian delegation.
Kallas calls on US to reconsider visa denial for Palestinian delegation to UN meeting
European Union foreign ministers have urged the United States to reconsider its decision not to allow Palestinian officials to take part in the UN General Assembly in New York, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas says.
Kallas made the comments after a meeting of the ministers in the Danish capital, Copenhagen, to discuss the war in Gaza.
