MOVE THE UN FROM THE U$A
France says US should not refuse Palestinians access to UN summit
France has insisted there should be no restrictions on access to next month's UN General Assembly, after the United States said it would deny visas to members of the Palestinian Authority. Under an agreement as the host of UN headquarters in New York, the US is not supposed to refuse visas for officials heading to the world body.
Issued on: 30/08/2025 - RFI
"A UN General Assembly meeting... should not be subject to any restrictions on access," French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Denmark on Saturday.
A string of ministers in Copenhagen echoed France's call for the United States to allow access to the Palestinian delegation.
In a statement on Friday, the US State Department said that it was "denying and revoking visas from members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) ahead of the upcoming 80th United Nations General Assembly, which begins on 9 September.
"The Trump administration has been clear: it is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace," the statement said
US to refuse visas to Palestinian officials at UN summit on state
The extraordinary step by Washington comes as France is leading a global appeal to recognise the Palestinian state at the gathering of world leaders in New York.
The move further aligns US President Donald Trump's administration with Israel's government, which has been waging a war in Gaza since Hamas launched terror attacks on Israeli territory on 7 October 2023.
Israel adamantly rejects a Palestinian state and has sought to conflate the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority with its rival Hamas, which rules Gaza.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, writing on X, thanked the Trump administration "for this bold step and for standing by Israel once again".
Israel slams French plan to recognise Palestinian state as a 'prize for terror'
The Palestinian Authority called for the United States to reverse its decision, which it said "stands in clear contradiction to international law and the UN Headquarters Agreement".
Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas, a veteran 89-year-old leader who once had cordial relations with Washington, had planned to attend the UN meeting, according to the Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour..
Under an agreement as host of the United Nations in New York, the United States is not meant to refuse visas for officials heading to the world body.
(with AFP)
The EU and the Palestinian president’s office on Saturday urged the Trump administration to reconsider its decision to revoke the visas of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials who had planned to attend next month’s annual meeting of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Issued on: 30/08/2025 -
By: FRANCE 24
01:20
The Palestinian president’s office on Saturday urged the US government to reverse its unusual decision to revoke his visa, weeks before he was meant to appear at the UN’s main annual meeting and an international conference about creating a Palestinian state.
The 27-nation European Union asked the Trump administration to reconsider the move, which drew broad criticism.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio rescinded the visas of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials ahead of next month’s annual high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly, the State Department disclosed Friday, citing national security interests. Abbas has addressed the General Assembly for many years, and generally leads the Palestinian delegation.
“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 on Saturday.
“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 said.
He urged countries to put pressure on the Trump administration to reverse the decision, notably those nations that organized a high-level conference on Sept. 22 about reviving efforts for a two-state solution in Israel and the Palestinian territories. It is co-hosted by France and Saudi Arabia.
02:11
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said he “deplores” the US decision.
“The UN headquarters is a sanctuary in the service of peace. It should not be subject to any access restrictions,” he posted on X Saturday after meeting with his counterparts from around the EU.
The EU’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas issued a statement about the revoked visas saying: ‘’In light of the existing headquarters agreements between the UN and its host state, we urge for this decision to be reconsidered.”
Abu Rudeineh also called for an end to Israel’s offensive in Gaza and “escalation in the West Bank, because none of this will lead to any solution.”
The move came as the Israeli military declared Gaza’s largest city a combat zone. Israel says Gaza City remains a stronghold of Hamas.
The Trump administration has taken several steps to target Palestinians with visa restrictions.
“It is in our national security interests to hold the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization) and PA (Palestinian Authority) accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace,” the State Department said in a statement.
The Palestinian Authority denounced the visa withdrawals as a violation of US commitments as the host country of the United Nations. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the world body would be seeking clarification from the State Department.
(FRANCE 24 with AP)
US to refuse UN summit visas for 80 Palestinians, including Abbas: US official
US revokes visas of Palestinian officials ahead of UN General Assembly, State Department says
The State Department also suspended a programme that had allowed injured Palestinian children from Gaza to come to the US for medical treatment after a social media outcry by some conservatives.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has revoked the visas of a number of Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organisation officials ahead of next month’s annual meeting of the UN General Assembly, where the groups previously have been represented.
The State Department said in a statement on Friday that Rubio also had ordered some new visa applications from Palestinian officials be denied.
The move is the latest in a series of steps the Trump administration has taken to target Palestinians with visa restrictions and comes on the same day as the Israeli military declared Gaza City a combat zone.
The State Department also suspended a programme that had allowed injured Palestinian children from Gaza to come to the US for medical treatment after a social media outcry by some conservatives.
The State Department didn’t specify how many visas had been revoked or how many applications had been denied. The department did not immediately respond to a request for more specifics.
It wasn't immediately clear if Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas would be affected.
The agency's statement did say that representatives assigned to the Palestinian Authority mission at the United Nations would be granted waivers under the US host country agreement with the UN so they can continue their New York-based operations.
"It is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace," the statement said.
"Before the PLO and PA can be considered partners for peace, they must consistently repudiate terrorism — including the October 7 massacre — and end incitement to terrorism in education, as required by U.S. law and as promised by the PLO.
The Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, told reporters on Friday that he had just learned of Rubio's decision and was assessing its impact.
"We will see exactly what it means and how it applies to any of our delegation, and we will respond accordingly," he said.
Mansour said Abbas was leading the delegation to next month's UN meetings and was expected to address the General Assembly, as he has done for many years.
He also was expected to attend a high-level meeting co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia on 22 September about a two-state solution, which calls for Israel living side-by-side with an independent Palestine.
At the UN, 147 of the organisation’s 193 member states recognise Palestine as a country and at the General Assembly it has had the status of non-member observer state since 2012.
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