US hits Palestine officials with visa bans amid growing statehood recognition
The sanctions are expected to have limited effect, as Palestinian officials generally avoid traveling to the United States due to restrictions imposed by a 2019 anti-terrorism law.
WASHINGTON — The State Department on Thursday announced sanctions that deny visas to members of the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization, accusing the groups of obstructing peace efforts with Israel.
“It is in our national security interests to impose consequences and hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments and undermining the prospects for peace,” the department said in its announcement.
The PLO is the internationally recognized representative of the Palestinian people, and the PA is the governing body established in the 1990s that exercises partial control over the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
The impact of the sanctions, however, is likely to be minimal. Palestinian officials were already avoiding the United States due to a 2019 law recently upheld by the Supreme Court that allows American victims of international terrorism to sue the PLO and the PA in US courts.
Their travel to UN headquarters in New York is another matter. The United States as host country has obligations to facilitate the travel of Palestinian and other foreign officials.
In its announcement Thursday, the State Department accused both entities of violating peace obligations enshrined in a pair of US laws, the PLO Commitments Compliance Act of 1989 and the Middle East Peace Commitments Act of 2002.
The department cited their efforts to internationalize the Israeli-Palestinian conflict via institutions like the International Criminal Court and their provision of welfare payments to prisoners in Israeli jails. It also accused the PA and the PLO of supporting terrorism through “incitement and glorification of violence,” particularly in school textbooks.
Relations between the United States and the PA remain fraught under the Trump administration, which signaled a downgrade in ties with the Palestinians when it merged the Palestinian Affairs office with the US Embassy in Jerusalem earlier this year.
After taking office in January, President Donald Trump revoked his predecessor’s sanctions on Israeli settlers and groups accused of violence against West Bank Palestinians. More recently, the administration imposed sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the top United Nations official overseeing Palestinian rights, who has been outspoken in her criticism of Israel.
The latest visa bans come as a growing number of US allies take steps to recognize the state of Palestine as pressure grows on Israel over the hunger crisis in Gaza. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Wednesday his country would recognize Palestine at the UN General Assembly in New York in September. France and the United Kingdom have made similar pledges.
