US Bars Palestinian President Abbas, 80 Officials From UN Assembly

The United States has barred Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and about 80 other Palestinians linked to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Palestinian Authority (PA) from attending the upcoming United Nations General Assembly in New York, where several U.S. allies, including Britain, France, Australia, and Canada, plan to recognize Palestine as a state. The State Department justified the visa denials by citing longstanding U.S. and Israeli accusations that the PA and PLO have failed to repudiate extremism and have sought unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, bypassing negotiations with Israel. Abbas' office condemned the move as a violation of the 1947 U.N. headquarters agreement, which generally requires the U.S. to allow foreign diplomats access to the U.N., though Washington maintains it can deny visas for national security and foreign policy reasons. The U.S. also emphasized the need for the PA and PLO to consistently repudiate terrorism, including the October 2023 Hamas attack that sparked the Gaza conflict. The Palestinian mission permanently based at the U.N. will not be affected by the visa restrictions. The U.N. has stated it will discuss the issue with the U.S. in accordance with the headquarters agreement, while Israel welcomed the U.S. decision as supportive of peace efforts.