US
Delays or
Denies Visa to
State of
Palestine
Counselor, "No
Reason"
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
September 24
-- On the
morning US
President
Barack Obama
is
to address the
UN General
Assembly, with
Israel -
Palestine and
John
Kerry's
initiative
among his top
topics, the US
has not not
given a
return visa to
the State of
Palestine's
First
Counselor to
the UN,
Rabii al
Hantouli,
Inner City
Press has
learned.
Rabii
al Hantouli
has been
active with
the
Palestinian
mission since
well before
they were
voted in as a
non-member
Observer State
two years ago.
Inner City
Press readers
may remember
Rabii persistently
sought
accountability
from UN
official
Stephane
Dujarric after
his UNTV unit
blacked out a
speech by
Palestinian
negotiator Saeb
Erekat. Click
here
for that.
But
Palestine is
an issue the
State
Department
ostensibly
takes
seriously.
While they may
say this is
just a
mistake,
jocular
comments
contrary to
the Host
Country
Agreement,
about blocking
or
delaying
visas, cast it
in a different
light. (This
is especially
true when the
US said
nothing when
UN official
Herve Ladsous
met with
ICC-indictee
Omar al Bashir
in July of
this year.)
Learning
on
Monday of his
plight, Inner
City Press
inquired with
Rabii al
Hantouli, who
replied:
"Hi
Matthew,
it is true I m
still waiting,
they do not
give any
reason.
We already
sent a letter
to the host
and the
committee."
The
Committee is
the Committee
on Relations
with the Host
Country, the
United States.
Its meeting
take place
behind closed
doors, after
the
fact, with a
staffer from
the US Mission
to the UN
trying to
justify
to member
states why
visas were not
given in time,
why some
countries
Missions are
denied bank
accounts (and
are then
accused of not
paying
their UN
dues), why
police didn't
stop vandalism
at Missions.
How
will
this one play
out? Watch
this site.
, 
