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UN Secretary-General António Guterres has “deeply regretted” the US decision to deny Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas a visa to attend next week’s UN General Assembly, a UN spokesman said Friday.
The US State Department said Thursday that it was extending visa restrictions on Palestinian officials, meaning Abbas and other Palestinian officials will be unable to attend the high-level gathering in New York. The General Assembly’s general debate is scheduled to begin on September 22.
“The Secretary-General is concerned about the impact of this decision on the ability of the State of Palestine to participate fully in the work of the United Nations,” Guterres’s spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
“The full participation of all delegations in the work of the Organization is essential to its proper functioning,” he added.
Guterres has urged the United States, as the host country, to ensure that visas are issued to all delegations in accordance with its obligations, Dujarric said. The UN chief will continue engaging with US authorities on the matter.
The Trump administration also denied visas to Palestinian officials last year, forcing Abbas to address the General Assembly by video.
The US State Department said its decision was linked to what it described as Palestinian actions to “internationalise” the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including through the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice. Washington also cited concerns over payments to families of Palestinians imprisoned or killed in attacks against Israelis.
The Palestinian Authority has said it reformed its assistance system to base payments on financial need rather than political affiliation or prisoner status.
The latest visa dispute comes as violence continues to escalate in the occupied West Bank amid the broader conflict that followed the October 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel.
