US Denies Abbas Visa for UN General Assembly for Second Year

For the second consecutive year, the United States has refused to grant a visa to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and his accompanying delegation, preventing their participation in the upcoming United Nations General Assembly meetings in New York. The U.S. State Department cited the extension of visa restrictions on Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) officials, accusing the Palestinian side of failing to implement required reforms and continuing actions Washington deems detrimental to peace efforts.

The department stated that the PLO and the Palestinian Authority have again not adhered to their commitments under U.S. law. They were accused of seeking to internationalize the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through international bodies, pursuing unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, and what the U.S. described as "glorifying terrorism."

Sources confirmed that the decision includes President Abbas, who will be unable to attend the General Assembly sessions in person. Palestinians will be represented by their accredited diplomats at the UN.

Washington took a similar step in August 2025, which led Abbas to participate in the General Assembly meetings via video conference at the time. This U.S. action comes amid ongoing disagreements regarding the stance on recognizing a Palestinian state, a move that received support from 142 UN member states during a conference on the two-state solution chaired by France and Saudi Arabia.