The official spokesman for the US State Department, Matthew Miller, expressed the US administration’s concern regarding what was reported about the Israeli authorities’ prevention of Palestinian American citizens in the occupied West Bank through Israel.

In response to a question from Al-Quds.com’s correspondent in Washington in this regard, he said: “With regard to the visa exemption program (for Israelis) - we are aware of reports that there are American citizens in the West Bank who are unable to pass through Israel as they are allowed to.” This is done in accordance with the requirements of the Visa Waiver Program.”

“We have expressed our concerns about this to the government of Israel,” Miller added. “I will not go into the full details of our private diplomatic conversations, but we expect Israel to address these concerns. We expect them to be in full compliance with the Visa Waiver Program, and there are remedial measures available to us if they do not.” Be like that.”

Regarding the possibility of suspending the visa waiver, Miller said: “There is a whole range of remedial measures that can be taken before the final suspension. This is of course the final measure that we can take for any country in the visa waiver program. There are measures that you can take to try to bring a country back.” to comply.”

Israel prevents some Palestinian Americans from entering its territory from the West Bank, which is a clear violation of the recent agreement under which citizens of the United States and Israel can travel to the other country without a visa.

The Departments of Homeland Security and State, which administer the program, said US officials were trying to solve the problem.

For her part, Erin Heater, spokeswoman for the US Department of Homeland Security, said that government officials are working with the government of Israel to address reports that Americans are facing problems traveling to and from Ben Gurion Airport.

The arrangement, announced in late September, before the war began, was part of a larger effort to improve relations between the two countries. At the time, President Biden was seeking to broker a diplomatic agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Under the visa waiver program, Israel will lift restrictions on Americans of Palestinian descent and other Americans of Arab or Muslim descent, making it easier for them to travel to and from the Palestinian territories.

For decades, Palestinian Americans have faced difficulties traveling to the Israeli-occupied West Bank to visit family and friends or to carry out humanitarian work. They were forced to travel first to Jordan, usually traveling to and from Queen Alia International Airport in the Jordanian capital, rather than entering or exiting Tel Aviv.

American officials insisted that the agreement would change that, but shortly after the announcement of Israel's inclusion in the program, Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, after which Israel launched a brutal war on the besieged Gaza Strip.

Citing security reasons, Israel imposed additional restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in the West Bank, whether they hold an American passport or not. Palestinian Americans found themselves unable to cross into or out of Israel at that border.