WASHINGTON – In a move coinciding with the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, the United States has launched a visa waiver program for Israelis, allowing them to visit the U.S. for up to 90 days without applying for a visa.
The U.S. officially admitted Israel into the visa waiver program on September 27, joining a select group of 40 countries and at that time the waiver was slated to begin on November 30.
However, the program has been made operational as of Thursday, according to the Department of Homeland Security which did not specify any reason for beginning the the program ahead of the regular schedule.
To qualify, Israelis need a biometrically enabled passport and those without one must apply for a U.S. visa.
This development follows a recent surge in hostilities between Israel and Hamas which left over 3000 Palestinians dead, potentially influencing the timeline.
The waiver program mandates that all U.S. citizens, including Palestinian Americans, be treated equitably when traveling through or to Israel. Meeting this criterion was a point of contention, with critics asserting that Palestinian Americans still faced discrimination when visiting Israel.
The news regarding Israel’s entry into the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) has invited criticism and Arab-American civil rights advocates are taking aim at the United States.
Countries in the VWP must allow visa-free travel for American citizens in reciprocity for a similar easing of visa requirements for their own nationals traveling to the US.
At present, scores of US and other foreign nationals of Palestinian and Arab descent are routinely denied entry by Israeli authorities as they control all access to the occupied Palestinian territories.
In 2019, a controversy spiked when Israel barred US Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib from visiting the country and the occupied Palestinian territories, citing “their boycott activities against Israel”.
