US suspends visas for Gaza residents after right-wing social media storm
State Department move comes as Israel’s war and induced famine in Gaza reach new extremes, with 61,827 killed so far.
The United States has announced that it is halting all visitor visas for people from Gaza pending a “a full and thorough” review, a day after social media posts about Palestinian refugees prompted furious reactions from right-wingers.
The Department of State’s move on Saturday came a day after far-right activist and Trump ally Laura Loomer posted on X that Palestinians “who claim to be refugees from Gaza” entered the US via San Francisco and Houston this month.
The United States has announced that it is halting all visitor visas for people from Gaza pending a “a full and thorough” review, a day after social media posts about Palestinian refugees prompted furious reactions from right-wingers.
The Department of State’s move on Saturday came a day after far-right activist and Trump ally Laura Loomer posted on X that Palestinians “who claim to be refugees from Gaza” entered the US via San Francisco and Houston this month.
“How is allowing for Islamic immigrants to come into the US America First policy?” she said on X in a later post, going on to report further Palestinian arrivals in Missouri and claiming that “several US Senators and members of Congress” had texted her to express their fury.
Republican lawmakers speaking publicly included Chip Roy of Texas, who said he would inquire about the matter, and Randy Fine of Florida, who described the alleged arrivals as a “national security risk”.
By Saturday, the State Department announced it was stopping visas for “individuals from Gaza” while it conducted “a full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days”. It did not provide a figure.
The US issued 640 visas to holders of the Palestinian Authority travel document in May, according to the Reuters news agency. B1/B2 visitor visas permit Palestinians to seek medical treatment in the US.
‘Dangerous and inhumane decision’
Aid groups have urged the US to reverse its “dangerous and inhumane decision”.
“This will have a devastating and irreversible impact on our ability to bring injured and critically ill children from Gaza to the US for lifesaving medical treatment,” the group warned.
The Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF) said the new restrictions will prevent children in urgent need of medical treatment from travelling to the US.
Tareq Hailat, director of Global Patient Affairs at the PCRF, urged Washington to reverse its decision. “This is extremely devastating news,” he told Al Jazeera. “The impact of this decision will be devastating. And the US must honestly reverse this decision immediately.”
