Washington expands ban on visas for Palestinians amid Gaza war

The United States has moved to sharply restrict visas for Palestinians, with reports indicating that nearly all applicants using a Palestinian Authority passport will now be denied entry.

The policy shift was communicated in a diplomatic cable dated August 18, according to reports by the New York Times and CNN.

This comes only weeks after Washington blocked dozens of Palestinian officials from attending the upcoming United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Among those affected was Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose visa was revoked along with those of 80 other officials.

In early August, the State Department had already halted visitor visas for people seeking to travel from Gaza. The latest directive extends the restrictions to a broader population, including Palestinians from the Israeli-occupied West Bank and those in the wider diaspora.

According to the reports, US consular officers have been instructed to deny non-immigrant visas to “all otherwise eligible Palestinian Authority passport holders.”

That directive covers applications for business, study, medical treatment, and other temporary stays. While Palestinians with access to other passports are not impacted, the move effectively amounts to a sweeping ban on PA document holders.

The Department of State did not directly confirm the blanket order but said in a statement: “The Trump administration is taking concrete steps in compliance with US law and our national security in regards to announced visa restrictions and revocations for PA (Palestinian Authority) passport holders. We refer you to those public announcements for more information on those restrictions and revocations. Every visa decision is a national security decision, and the State Department is vetting and adjudicating visa decisions for PA passport holders accordingly.”

The new restrictions deepen a hardline approach already seen in earlier measures.

The Trump administration has consistently supported Israel’s military campaign against Hamas and recently cracked down on pro-Palestinian protests on US university campuses.

The developments also come as several US allies,  including the UK, Canada and France, announced conditional recognition of a Palestinian state. US Vice-President JD Vance has reiterated that Washington has “no plans” to follow that path.

The Gaza conflict remains the backdrop of these decisions. Hamas, which the US designates a terrorist organisation, carried out a deadly assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has since killed at least 63,459 Palestinians, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.

With the new visa restrictions, Palestinians seeking to enter the US for education, work or medical needs now face unprecedented barriers, further limiting their international mobility at a time of continuing conflict.