Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday thanked US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio for their decision to deny Palestinian Authority (PA) officials, including chairman Mahmoud Abbas, visas to the US ahead of the UN General Assembly later this month.
“On behalf of the state of Israel, I thank President Trump and Secretary Rubio for their moral clarity,” Netanyahu said in a statement.
He added, “Denying visas to those who glorify terror is not punishment, it is justice. There are no prizes for terror and no rewards for barbarism.”
On Friday, Rubio announced that PA officials, including Abbas, would be barred from attending the Assembly, citing their failure to uphold commitments and efforts to gain unilateral recognition.
Abbas’s office expressed “deep regret and astonishment,” urging the administration to reverse course.
On Sunday, the New York Times reported that the Trump administration has imposed a broad suspension on visitor visas for holders of Palestinian Authority passports, effectively halting entry for thousands seeking medical care, education, or family visits in the United States.
The directive, issued via a State Department cable on August 18, instructs consular officers to deny nonimmigrant visas under section 221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
The move expands earlier restrictions targeting Palestinian Arabs from Gaza and now includes those from Judea and Samaria and the diaspora. Palestinian Arabs with dual nationality or existing visas are exempt, noted the Times.