• Home
  • News
    • Nigeria
    • Africa
    • Middle East
    • World
    • Features
    • Interviews
    • New Edition
    • Muslim News
  • Analysis
    • Islam & Media
  • Perspectives
    • Opinion
    • Press Releases
    • Editorial
    • Letters
    • Al-Fahm
  • Islam-tainment
    • Sports
    • Arts
    • Poetry
  • Multimedia
    • Audio
    • Video
    • Photos
    • Investigations
  • iGuide
    • Testimony
    • Salah
    • Zakat
    • Fasting
    • Muslim Personalities
  • DONATE
Friday, August 1, 2025
Muslim News Nigeria
  • Home
  • News
    • Nigeria
    • Africa
    • Middle East
    • World
    • Features
    • Interviews
    • New Edition
    • Muslim News
  • Analysis
    • Islam & Media
  • Perspectives
    • Opinion
    • Press Releases
    • Editorial
    • Letters
    • Al-Fahm
  • Islam-tainment
    • Sports
    • Arts
    • Poetry
  • Multimedia
    • Audio
    • Video
    • Photos
    • Investigations
  • iGuide
    • Testimony
    • Salah
    • Zakat
    • Fasting
    • Muslim Personalities
  • DONATE
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Nigeria
    • Africa
    • Middle East
    • World
    • Features
    • Interviews
    • New Edition
    • Muslim News
  • Analysis
    • Islam & Media
  • Perspectives
    • Opinion
    • Press Releases
    • Editorial
    • Letters
    • Al-Fahm
  • Islam-tainment
    • Sports
    • Arts
    • Poetry
  • Multimedia
    • Audio
    • Video
    • Photos
    • Investigations
  • iGuide
    • Testimony
    • Salah
    • Zakat
    • Fasting
    • Muslim Personalities
  • DONATE
No Result
View All Result
Muslim News Nigeria
No Result
View All Result

Biden administration confirms visa-free US travel for Israelis

Washington says Israel’s admission to Visa Waiver Program recognises ‘shared security interests, close cooperation’.

by Muslim News Nigeria
2 years ago
in Middle East
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0
Biden administration confirms visa-free US travel for Israelis

The move comes a week after US President Joe Biden met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on September 20, 2023 [Kevin Lamarque/Reuters]

• Palestine seeks equal opportunity, as Israel lauds decision

US President Joe Biden’s administration has confirmed it will allow Israelis to travel visa-free to the United States, despite condemnation and concerns over Israel’s treatment of Palestinian and Arab-American travellers.

In a statement on Wednesday, the US Department of Homeland Security said Israel had been designated for the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) and that Israeli nationals will be able to travel to the US without a visa by November 30.

“The designation of Israel into the Visa Waiver Program is an important recognition of our shared security interests and the close cooperation between our two countries,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said.

“This designation, which represents over a decade of work and coordination between the United States and Israel, will enhance our two nations’ collaboration on counterterrorism, law enforcement, and our other common priorities.”

Israel lauds decision

Michael Herzog, Israel’s ambassador to the US, also lauded the decision on Wednesday as a “significant milestone” in the relationship between the two countries.

“Our people-to-people ties, which are the backbone of our special relationship, will only grow stronger,” Herzog wrote in a social media post.

The move follows a high-profile meeting last week between Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, where the two leaders pledged continued cooperation.

Palestine seeks equal opportunity

In it’s reaction, Palestine called for its inclusion in a US waiver program that allows citizens to travel to the United States for up to 90 days for tourism without a visa.

“We expect from the American Administration to provide the same opportunities of freedom, equality, prosperity, and security for Palestinians, including visas procedures for exempting them from,” the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Arab-American civil rights condemn it

But the prospect of Israel’s entry into the VWP has faced widespread condemnation from Arab-American civil rights advocates.

That is because one of the main elements of the programme is what is known as “reciprocity”; countries in the VWP must allow visa-free travel for American citizens in exchange for a similar easing of visa requirements for their own nationals travelling to the US.

However, scores of US and other foreign nationals of Palestinian and other Arab descent are routinely turned away by Israeli authorities, who control all access to the occupied Palestinian territories.

For example, Israel in 2019 blocked US Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib from visiting the country and the occupied Palestinian territories over “their boycott activities against Israel”.

In Wednesday’s statement, the Biden administration said Israel “made updates to its entry policies to meet the VWP requirement to extend reciprocal privileges to all US citizens without regard to national origin, religion, or ethnicity”.

“This important achievement will enhance freedom of movement for U.S. citizens, including those living in the Palestinian Territories or traveling to and from them,” said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Still, human rights advocates have cast doubt on whether Israel would live up to its commitments.

On Tuesday, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) said it had filed a lawsuit against Israel’s VWP designation. “Credible reports and ADC’s own investigations have shown that Israel failed to meet all of the legal requirements for admission,” the group said.

Abed Ayoub, the ADC’s executive director, told Al Jazeera earlier this week that by letting Israel into the programme, the Biden administration “has endorsed and embraced Israeli discrimination and apartheid”.

“With this decision, the US government will be sending a message that not all American passport holders are equal,” Ayoub said.

Leading rights groups and international experts have accused Israel of maintaining a system of apartheid against Palestinians.

Yet despite widespread criticism of the Israeli government’s human rights record, Biden has said his support for the country is unwavering. Israel receives at least $3.8bn in US military aid annually.

“You’ve heard me say many times: Were there no Israel, we’d have to invent one, and I mean it,” the US president told Netanyahu in New York on September 20.

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA

 

Sponsored

SUPPORT MUSLIM NEWS NIGERIA

With your generous financial contributions to MUSLIM NEWS, you are helping to sustain a culture of journalistic integrity that promotes tranquil Islamic values and ensures it remains free and available to all.

BANK TRANSFER

Rawshield PR Company

0568624004

Guaranty Trust Bank

Share this:

  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window) Telegram
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp

Related

Tags: IsraelPalestineUSUS Visa waiver
Previous Post

Blast at Pakistan procession to mark prophet’s birthday kills at least 52

Next Post

What would a potential Saudi-Israel normalisation deal mean for Palestine?

Next Post
What would a potential Saudi-Israel normalisation deal mean for Palestine?

What would a potential Saudi-Israel normalisation deal mean for Palestine?

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Post

Türkiye signs Hague Group declaration on Palestine, takes further measures against Israel

Türkiye signs Hague Group declaration on Palestine, takes further measures against Israel

July 31, 2025
More than 70 Palestinian aid seekers killed as starvation worsens in Gaza

More than 70 Palestinian aid seekers killed as starvation worsens in Gaza

July 31, 2025
Seven new Saudi aid trucks cross Rafah into Gaza as relief efforts intensify

Seven new Saudi aid trucks cross Rafah into Gaza as relief efforts intensify

July 31, 2025
CodeAvour finalists build solar-powered farm robot as Al-Hikmat College graduates 15 students

CodeAvour finalists build solar-powered farm robot as Al-Hikmat College graduates 15 students

July 30, 2025

Donate to Muslim News

Nigerians and the world need alternative journalism that unites Muslims; promotes Islam and spreads the universality of its true message.

If you help Allah’s cause, Allah will help you. Qur’an 22:40

Muslim News Nigeria is committed to reporting Islam and happenings in the Muslim world in accordance with Islamic principles based on truth and truth-telling (siddiq and haqq), pedagogy (tabligh), seeking the best for the public interest (maslahah), and moderation (wasatiyyah).

We have a fold of professional, conscious and devoted Muslims who work tirelessly on stories and those who donate to assist the cause.

News reporting and production is a process with different stages, each with its cost implication. Hence, as we appreciate existing supporters and sponsors, we look forward to more donations from well-meaning Muslims and members of the general public.

Your kind gesture will make our work seamless.

Donate now!!!

Rawshield PR Company,
GTB Account: 0568624004

About Us

Muslim News, a publication of Rawshield PR Media, is a mouthpiece for underreported Muslim achievers and events in Nigeria and across the world, which are never given prominence in the mainstream media.

Email: muslimnewsng@gmail.com
Tel: +234 805 240 4597

Our Mission

To give special media attention and coverage to important people and events in the life of Muslims that do not gain mainstream media attention, and to change the media narrative of blaming Islam and Muslims for offences committed in its lofty name.

About Us

Muslim News, a publication of Rawshield PR Media, is a mouthpiece for underreported Muslim achievers and events in Nigeria and across the world, which are never given prominence in the mainstream media.

Email: muslimnewsng@gmail.com
Tel: +234 906 869 5152

Our Mission

To give special media attention and coverage to important people and events in the life of Muslims that do not gain mainstream media attention, and to change the media narrative of blaming Islam and Muslims for offences committed in its lofty name.

Editorial Policy

We shall be fair to all persons, irrespective of their religions and ideologies, as long as that promotes the image of Islam and unites the Muslims. We shall also uphold the ethical standards of journalism, as allowed by Islamic ethics.

Support Muslim News

Rawshield PR Company

0568624004

Guaranty Trust Bank

  • Home
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Perspectives
  • Islam-tainment
  • Multimedia
  • iGuide
  • DONATE

© 2022 Published by RawshieldPR

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Latest News
  • Nigeria News
  • Africa News
  • Middle East News
  • World News
  • Sports News
  • Support Muslim News Nigeria

© 2022 Published by RawshieldPR