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US-PLO row jeopardizes consular services for Palestinians

Visas and other services may be collateral damage as the Donald Trump administration closes the Palestine Liberation Organization’s mission office in Washington.
Palestinian flag waves at Palestine Liberation Organization office in Washington, U.S., November 19, 2017. U.S. State Department official said that under legislation passed by Congress, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson could not renew a certification that expired this month for the PLO office. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC181D30EBB0

Palestinian-Americans are at risk of being collateral damage in the escalating diplomatic row between Washington and Ramallah.

The State Department announced Monday that it was ordering the closure of the Palestinians’ mission in the US capital because of their refusal to participate in a US-backed peace process that favors Israel. Unmentioned, however, is the fact that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) office also provides a bevy of consular services for Palestinians, Palestinian-Americans and others seeking to do business in the West Bank and Gaza.

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