T’ruah calls on United States immigration authorities to reverse their decision to deny entry to senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi. The denial of a visa to a senior PLO official who has met with presidents and other senior U.S. political leaders over the course of three decades demonstrates the Trump administration’s lack of interest in achieving a just and peaceful solution for both Israelis and Palestinians.
This denial comes soon after the U.S. barred two other prominent Palestinians from entering the United States: Omar Barghouti, the founder of the global BDS movement; and Osama Iliwat, an activist with Combatants for Peace, who partners with Israeli veterans to work toward a just resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
And it follows several other high-profile efforts by the Trump administration to humiliate and cut off support for Palestinians, including shuttering the Palestinian diplomatic mission in Washington, D.C., and cutting off funds for the United Nations Relief and Welfare Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) and other agencies providing critical humanitarian services in the West Bank and Gaza.
We damage our moral standing as a nation when we refuse entry to those with whom our political leaders disagree, and the U.S. further damages its status as an honest broker when it refuses entry to Palestinians, including a senior PLO representative.
By refusing to engage with Palestinians or even allow them to visit our country, the administration only fosters hopelessness and extremism.
It is ironic that Hanan Ashrawi’s visa is being denied as the Trump administration prepares to unveil a “peace plan,” developed without any Palestinian participation, and not long after Mideast Envoy Jason Greenblatt tweeted that Ashrawi is “always welcome” in his office at the White House.
Ultimately, only a negotiated two-state solution will guarantee the safety, security, and human rights of both Israelis and Palestinians. The Trump administration’s actions threaten to sabotage this long-term solution, while also doing great damage in the short term.
T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights mobilizes a network of more than 2,000 rabbis and cantors from all streams of Judaism that, together with the Jewish community, act on the Jewish imperative to respect and advance the human rights of all people. Grounded in Torah and our Jewish historical experience and guided by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we call upon Jews to assert Jewish values by raising our voices and taking concrete steps to protect and expand human rights in North America, Israel, and the occupied Palestinian territories.
To learn more or to speak with T’ruah Executive Director Rabbi Jill Jacobs, contact Julie Wiener at jwiener@truah.org or (212) 845-5201.
