UN approves video address by Palestine’s Abbas after US visa refusal

UN General Assembly votes 145-5, allowing President Mahmoud Abbas to code the UNGA adjacent week by video aft the US denied him a visa.

The United Nations General Assembly has voted to let Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to code its yearly gathering of satellite leaders adjacent week by video nexus aft the United States refused to assistance him a visa to question to New York successful person.

“The State of Palestine whitethorn taxable a prerecorded connection of its President, which volition beryllium played successful the General Assembly Hall,” said the resolution, which passed connected Friday with 145 votes successful favor, 5 opposed, and six abstentions.

Recommended Stories

• list 1 of 3US denies visas for Palestinian officials earlier UN assembly
• list 2 of 3The US authorities does not privation immoderate Palestinian to speak
• list 3 of 3Trump threatens commercialized woody aft Canada moves towards recognising Palestine

The determination comes weeks aft the Palestinian Authority urged Washington to reinstate Abbas’s visa truthful that helium could question to the United States to pb the Palestinian delegation and code the UNGA successful person.

Abbas was among 80 Palestinian officials whose visas were revoked by the US State Department, citing nationalist information concerns.

The General Assembly speeches are scheduled to statesman connected Tuesday aft leaders stitchery connected Monday for a acme — hosted by France and Saudi Arabia — that aims to physique momentum towards a two-state solution betwixt Israel and the Palestinians.

“Gaza is contented fig 1 astatine the UN General Assembly,” Al Jazeera’s Diplomatic Editor James Bays reported from New York.

“All leaders travel present and springiness their speeches. But connected this juncture … Mahmoud Abbas has been denied a visa … which is precise unusual.”

Bays said the overwhelming ballot successful favour of Abbas addressing the UNGA by video was a “snapshot of planetary sentiment connected Palestine and Gaza”, and that it showed “very fewer countries that are backing the broadside of Israel and the US”.

The Trump administration’s determination has received wide criticism, with the UN asserting that it violates the Host Country Agreement, nether which the US is obligated to licence heads of authorities and authorities to question to New York for yearly meetings and diplomatic business.

The US visa curbs travel amid increasing condemnation of Israel’s war connected Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and a question of Israeli settler and subject unit successful the occupied West Bank.

In effect to Israel’s devastating attacks implicit the past astir 2 years, an expanding fig of countries, chiefly successful Europe, person announced intentions to backmost Palestinian statehood astatine the UN this September.

According to section wellness officials, Israel’s warfare connected Gaza has killed astatine slightest 65,141 radical and wounded 165,925 since October 2023, with thousands much believed to beryllium buried successful the rubble.