WASHINGTON: A US official said Saturday that Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas is among 80 officials being denied visas to attend next month’s UN General Assembly, where France is leading a push to recognize a Palestinian state.
“Abbas is affected by this action along with approximately 80 other PA officials,” a State Department official said in a statement, detailing those impacted by the extraordinary decision announced on Friday by the United States, a key ally of Israel.
Israel adamantly rejects a Palestinian state and has sought to lump together the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority with rival Hamas in Gaza.
The United States and Israel have accused France and other powers of rewarding Hamas.
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Canada and Australia have also said they would recognize a Palestinian state, and Britain threatened to do so if Israel does not agree to a ceasefire in Gaza.
Under an agreement as host of the United Nations in New York, the United States is not supposed to refuse visas for officials heading to the world body.
Activists each year press the United States to deny visas to leaders of countries that they oppose, often over grave human rights violations, but their appeals are almost always rejected.
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