Visas for Palestinian officials and diplomats to attend the United Nations General Assembly in September in New York were denied by the United States this Friday, thus prohibiting their entry into the country.
The memorandum from the State Department released on the matter recommends revoking all visas of the Palestinian delegation that were issued before July 31, including that of the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas.
On that same date, the coalition led by Abbas, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), as well as the Palestinian Authority, were sanctioned by the State Department for failing to repudiate terrorism and for not complying with the 1989 PLO Commitments Compliance Act and the 2002 Middle East Peace Commitments Act.
The State Department's statement.
"In compliance with United States laws and national security interests, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is denying and revoking visas for members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) ahead of the upcoming UN General Assembly," reads the statement issued by Tommy Pigott, Department spokesperson.
"Before they can be taken seriously as partners for peace, the PA and the PLO must repudiate terrorism, the legal campaigns of the International Criminal Court, and the pursuit of unilateral recognition of the Palestinian state," Pigott added.
