US Delegation to Visit Israel to Review Security for Visa-Free Travel

The United States is sending a special delegation to Israel to assess whether the country continues to meet the security requirements for its visa-free travel program. The delegation, currently in the United Arab Emirates, is expected to arrive in Israel in the coming days, according to Israel's Channel 12. This review comes in the wake of an investigation into an incident involving a FlyDubai flight. In 2023, Israel's Knesset passed a law, at the US's request, mandating the pre-transmission of passenger and crew data to Israeli authorities, a condition for joining the US visa-waiver program. The US now wants to verify that these requirements are being implemented.

On October 6, Minister of Transport Miri Regev sent a letter to the Prime Minister, the head of the National Security Council, members of the political-military cabinet, and heads of security agencies. In the letter, she stated that her ministry is not responsible for vetting foreign crew members. Regev proposed a special visa or mandatory document for all passengers and crew arriving in Israel, to be completed 48 hours before departure. However, sources cited by N12 believe this initiative may be rejected due to concerns about reciprocal measures from other countries against Israelis.

Regev also requested 40 million shekels and ten additional staff positions for the Ministry of Transport to enable it to fulfill its security duties concerning charter flights.