HARARE — The Ambassador of the State of Palestine to Zimbabwe, Dr Tamer Al-Massri, has condemned the United States government’s decision to deny entry visas to President Mahmoud Abbas and other members of the official Palestinian delegation ahead of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81) in New York.
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Read E-PaperIn a statement issued this week, Al-Massri said the move marked the second consecutive year that Washington had barred Palestinian representatives from appearing before the world body, calling it an attempt to silence victims of what he described as ongoing genocide, ethnic cleansing and systematic war crimes committed by Israel.
“For the second consecutive year, the United States has barred the legitimate representatives of the Palestinian people from appearing before the very body established to give every nation a voice,” Al-Massri said.
The envoy argued that Washington, as host country to the United Nations, carries binding obligations under the 1947 UN Headquarters Agreement to facilitate rather than obstruct accredited representatives and heads of delegation seeking access to UN premises. He said refusing visas to Palestinian leadership breached that agreement and defied the spirit of the UN Charter, which affirms sovereign equality among member and observer states.
The State Department confirmed the visa denials last week, saying the Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization had not honoured earlier commitments to Washington. Officials cited Palestinian recourse to the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court, continued payments to families of prisoners convicted of attacks against Israelis, and what the department termed glorification of violence.
Despite the visa refusal, the UN General Assembly voted 152 to 3 to permit Abbas to deliver a prerecorded address to the session, a repeat of the arrangement used the previous year when he also addressed the chamber remotely. Palestinian diplomats already accredited to the UN mission in New York remain able to represent Palestine at the gathering.
Al-Massri said the exclusion of Palestinian leadership stood in contrast to the platform still afforded to Israel at the same forum.
“While the voices of those enduring documented atrocities are forcibly suppressed, the perpetrators of these crimes are provided a prominent global platform to distort reality, evade accountability and perpetuate aggression with impunity,” he said, adding that shielding the alleged aggressor while silencing the victim rendered the host nation complicit in suppressing truth on the world stage.
The ambassador called on UN member states, the Secretary-General and the wider international community to speak out against what he termed a pattern of exclusion, warning that it set a dangerous precedent for multilateral diplomacy.
He said Palestine would still be represented at the General Assembly session regardless of the obstacles placed before its delegation.
“The Palestinian people will not be silenced,” Al-Massri said. “Palestine will be represented at this General Assembly, whatever obstacles are placed in its path, and the world will continue to hear its voice.”
The European Union has separately urged Washington to reconsider the visa denials, saying it regretted the decision.
