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| Trump administration suspends visas for visitors coming from Gaza | |
| 2025-08-16 | |
| [JTN] The State Department on Saturday abruptly halted issuing visas for foreigners seeking to travel to the United States from Gaza. Officials said they suspended the visas until the issuing process is revamped. "All visitor visas for individuals from Gaza are being stopped while we conduct a full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days," the State Department announced on X. In June, the Trump administration began cracking down on vetting for visa applicants. This involved the introduction of a "comprehensive and thorough" review of all applicants' "online presence." "Every visa adjudication is a national security decision. The United States must be vigilant during the visa issuance process to ensure that those applying for admission into the United States do not intend to harm Americans and our national interests, and that all applicants credibly establish their eligibility for the visa sought, including that they intend to engage in activities consistent with the terms for their admission," the State Department said at the time. Earlier this month, France suspended evacuations from Gaza after a Palestinian student allegedly shared a social media post with an image of Adolf Hitler that called for killing Jews. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told France Info radio that the woman "must leave the country" and that she "has no place" in France. "No evacuation of any kind will take place until we have drawn the necessary conclusions from this investigation," Barrot said in the interview. He also vowed there would be a probe into how the Palestinian woman was able to get a student visa. The student, later identified as Nour Attaalah, left France for Qatar after the incident. As of Jan. 1, 2025, the population in Gaza had dropped by 6% since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023, according to Reuters, which cited the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). The outlet noted that this includes approximately 100,000 Palestinians who fled the enclave.
Many of those granted visas were children who lost limbs or suffered other serious injuries as a result of Israeli airstrikes and who are now receiving treatment in various cities across the US, a source familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel, adding that the effort was backed by US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. His office has not responded to requests for comment. The State Department’s move to stop visitor visas for people from Gaza came after Laura Loomer, a far-right activist and an ally of President Donald Trump, said on social media on Friday that the Palestinian “refugees” had entered the US this month. Loomer’s statement sparked outrage among some Republicans, with US Representative Chip Roy, of Texas, saying he would inquire about the matter and Representative Randy Fine, of Florida, describing it as a “national security risk.” | |
| Posted by:Frank G |
| #3 US State Department halts all visitor visas for Gazans Now do Syria, North Africa & surrounds, Latin America and East Europeans. |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2025-08-16 14:47 |
| #2 Aaaand the Times of Israel has the answer. The internet is a wonderful thing. ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2025-08-16 13:05 |
| #1 Interesting. What brought that on? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2025-08-16 12:06 |