US Denies Entry to PA Leader Abbas, Citing 'Incitement' Ahead of UN Speech

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas delivered his United Nations General Assembly address via a pre-recorded video on Thursday after the U.S. State Department denied him a visa for the second consecutive year. Abbas criticized the visa denial as a violation of UN procedures and urged the U.S. to lift sanctions and resume dialogue on a two-state solution.

In his speech, Abbas launched sharp accusations against Israel, claiming the Palestinian people in Gaza are subjected to "genocidal war, killing, destruction, starvation, and a humanitarian catastrophe." He also accused Israel of Judaizing Jerusalem and accelerating settlement expansion in the West Bank, calling it a "colonial scheme" to force Palestinians out and warning against another "Nakba and massacre like in 1948."

Abbas called on the international community to stop supplying weapons to Israel and criticized the IDF, alleging it enables "violent gangs that burn communities." He also advocated for the unification of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem under PA rule with "one law and one weapon," and called for accelerating the implementation of UN Resolution 2803's second phase to establish a "peace council for Gaza."

Ironically, while Abbas was barred from entering the U.S., Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who had previously issued threats of annihilation against the U.S., was granted a visa and addressed the assembly, displaying a photo of Iran's deceased Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly later on Thursday at 9:00 PM.