- By Wallace Mawire
The Ambassador of the State of Palestine to the Republic of Zimbabwe, Dr. Tamer Al-Massri, said he regrets the hostile decision by the United States government to deny entry visas to President Mahmoud Abbas and members of the official Palestinian delegation ahead of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81) in New York which he said is an attempt to silence the victims of ongoing genocide, ethnic cleansing, and systematic war crimes committed by Israel.
The Ambassador said 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.
He said as the host country to the United Nations, the United States bears binding obligations under the 1947 UN Headquarters Agreement to facilitate, not obstruct, the access of accredited representatives and heads of delegation to UN premises. The Ambassador said refusing visas to Palestine’s leadership is a breach of the agreement and in defiance of the spirit and letter of the UN Charter, which affirms the sovereign equality of all member and observer states and guarantees a platform for every people to address the community of nations.
The Ambassador added that while the voices of those enduring documented atrocities are forcibly suppressed, the perpetrators of the crimes are provided a prominent global platform to distort reality, evade accountability, and perpetuate aggression with impunity.
Al-Masri highlighted the action as, “Silencing the victim while sheltering the aggressor renders the host nation fully complicit in suppressing truth and justice on the world stage,”.
The Ambassador has called on member states, the UN Secretary-General, and the international community to speak plainly against the pattern of exclusion, which sets a dangerous precedent for the future of multilateral diplomacy itself.
He said the Palestinian people will not be silenced. The Ambassador said Palestine will be represented at the General Assembly, whatever obstacles are placed in its path, and the world will continue to hear its voice.