UN General Assembly Allows Mahmoud Abbas To Address By Video After U.S. Visa Denial

UN votes for Abbas video

The United Nations General Assembly voted 152-3, with four abstentions, on Thursday to allow Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to address its annual high-level gathering by video after the United States denied him a visa to attend in person.

The measure also permits Abbas and other senior Palestinian officials to participate remotely in U.N. meetings or conferences over the following year if U.S. visa restrictions prevent them from traveling to the United States.

The U.S. State Department said on Wednesday it would extend visa sanctions against Palestine Liberation Organization members and Palestinian Authority officials, citing what it described as failures to reform and actions that contradict prior commitments.

Reuters, citing a Palestinian official, and AFP, citing a source familiar with the matter, reported that Abbas was among those denied a visa.

The UN resolution’s remote-participation framework is tied to the 1947 Headquarters Agreement between the United Nations and the United States, under which the host country is generally required to permit foreign representatives to travel to U.N. headquarters.

Reporting for this section- IMEMC News

152 countries back resolution

In a separate UNGA vote described by Al-Jazirah Net, 152 countries voted in favor of a resolution urging the United States to immediately reverse its decision to prevent the Palestinian delegation from participating in the 81st session of the General Assembly. The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the resolution, saying it represents a rejection of the American administration’s decision as a clear violation of the UN Headquarters Agreement. Al-Jazirah Net reported that the resolution received 152 votes in favor, while the United States, Israel, and Paraguay voted against it, and four countries abstained: Colombia, Honduras, Panama, and Peru.

Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour condemned the denial of the Palestinian delegation, calling the visa ban a clear violation of the host state's obligations under the UN Headquarters Agreement. The same report said Abbas’s speech would be delivered at the scheduled time and date via a televised address, after Abbas had addressed the General Assembly via video last year when barred from traveling to New York.

Reporting for this sectionAl-Jazirah Net

Host obligations and next steps

The resolution adopted on Thursday, as described by China Daily Global Edition, allows Palestine to submit a pre-recorded statement by Abbas that will be played in the General Assembly Hall during the general debate at the 81st session after introduction by its representative who is physically present.

China Daily Global Edition said the resolution also decides that Palestine may deliver statements via videoconference or submit a pre-recorded statement at meetings of the high-level international conference for the peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine and the implementation of the two-state solution.

The same report states that the United States on Wednesday extended visa restrictions on Palestinian officials, including Abbas, preventing him from attending the UN General Assembly high-level week in person for the second consecutive year.

In the Al-Youm Al-Sabe account, the UNGA vote passed with 152 votes in favor, 3 against, and 4 abstentions, and it said the decision will allow Abbas and other senior Palestinian officials to participate via video link in the coming year if prevented from traveling to the United States.

Al-Youm Al-Sabe also quoted the U.S. State Department’s rationale that the Trump administration decided to extend the visa restrictions, including “activities that undermine prospects for peace,” while noting the “Seat Agreement” established by the United Nations in 1947 requires the United States to allow foreign diplomats to enter the U.N. headquarters in New York.

Reporting for this sectionChina Daily Global EditionAl-Youm Al-Sabe