On August 29, the U.S. State Department refused to issue visas to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and about 80 other Pakistani officials who planned to visit the United States to attend the UN General Assembly, the Palestinian national authorities condemned it, saying the U.S. move "violates international law and the UN Headquarters Agreement".
On April 23, Palestinian President Abbas attended the 32nd meeting of the Central Committee of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) in the city of Ramallah on the West Bank.
Pakistan protests
The agency quoted a statement issued by the U.S. State Department on Monday that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered the refusal of visa applications or the revocation of visas for certain Palestinian officials, with the exception of members of the Permanent Mission of the Pakistani National Authority to the United Nations.
The statement accused the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the Palestinian Authority of "undermining the prospects for peace" in the US decision, which was made in the "national security interest".
A statement by the Palestinian authorities said the Palestinian presidency was "deeply regretful and shocked" at the US decision, which violated international law and the United Nations Headquarters Agreement, "especially given that Palestine is an observer state."
The United Nations and the United States signed the United Nations Headquarters Agreement in 1947, under which the United States allowed foreign diplomats to enter the United Nations headquarters.
United Nations intervention
Stefana Diyarik, spokesman for the United Nations Secretary-General, said that the United Nations will consult with the U.S. State Department in accordance with the United Nations Headquarters Agreement signed by the two parties. He said: "It is very important for all member states and observer states of the United Nations to be able to attend the meeting."
Since the United States refused to issue a visa to Yasser Arafat, then leader of the PLO, in 1988, the United Nations General Assembly moved a meeting on the Palestinian issue from New York to Geneva, Switzerland, that year so that Arafat could attend.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sale welcomed the U.S. decision and thanked the Trump administration through social media for “taking a bold move and backing Israel again.”
Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations, told reporters on the 29th that Abbas plans to lead a delegation to the United Nations General Assembly and speak at the General Assembly as in previous years. According to a number of foreign media reports, Abbas plans to attend a high-level meeting hosted by France and Saudi Arabia on September 22nd with the theme of "two-state solution".
On September 18, 2024, in the United Nations headquarters in New York, Palestinian Permanent Observer at the United Nations Riad Mansour celebrated after the vote of the 10th Emergency Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
According to multiple media reports, Britain, France, Australia and Canada are expected to officially recognize the Palestinian state at this high-level meeting on September 22nd. Recently, many Western countries have successively announced that they will recognize the Palestinian state. Israel's continued military operations in the Gaza Strip and its continuous expansion of settlement construction in the West Bank have increasingly aroused anger and dissatisfaction in the international community. (Reporter: Wang Yijun)