The United States said on Friday it will not allow Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to travel to New York next month for a United Nations gathering of world leaders, where several U.S. allies are set to recognize Palestine as a state.
A State Department official said Abbas and about 80 other Palestinians would be affected by the decision to deny and revoke visas from members of the umbrella Palestine Liberation Organization and the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority.
Abbas had been planning to travel to New York for the annual high-level U.N. General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in Manhattan. He was also set to attend a summit there — hosted by France and Saudi Arabia — where Britain, France, Australia and Canada have pledged to formally recognize a Palestinian state.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.