The European Union says it regrets the denial of visas by the United States for the second year running to Palestinian Authority (PA) officials seeking to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, urging it to reconsider the decision. The statement on Saturday comes just days after the UNGA voted to allow Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to address the body during the upcoming 81st session via a prerecorded statement. On Friday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also expressed regret at Washington’s decision, adding he was concerned about its impact “on the ability of the State of Palestine to participate fully in the work of the United Nations”.
The US Department of State announced on Wednesday that it would prolong visa sanctions on officials of the PA and members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). The department accused the PA of violating US law by bypassing direct negotiations to seek international recognition of Palestinian statehood. It also cited the PA’s decision to take its dispute with Israel to international courts and its financial support for people the US and Israel label as convicted attackers and their families.
No Israeli officials face equivalent US travel restrictions, despite an International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over alleged war crimes in Gaza. Abbas’s address this year is expected to push for international recognition of Palestinian statehood and revive momentum for a two-state solution, building on a wave of formal recognitions by the United Kingdom, France, Canada and other Western nations last year. His speech will also highlight the severe humanitarian crisis in Gaza alongside the rapid growth of illegal Israeli settlements and settler pogroms across the occupied West Bank.
Palestine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates welcomed the UN resolution passed on Thursday allowing Abbas to address the assembly next week, saying it “represents a breaking of the attempt to prevent Palestine’s participation” in the UNGA’s annual session.
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