The U.S. State Department announced it would cease granting visas to Palestinians from Gaza, including individuals seeking medical treatment in the United States, a decision that followed advocacy by far-right political activist Laura Loomer.
“All visitor visas for individuals from Gaza are being halted as we conduct a comprehensive review of the procedures and processes utilized for issuing a limited number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days,” stated the U.S. State Department .
This decision is expected to affect numerous programs that have facilitated the evacuation of dozens of severely injured children from Gaza over the past 21 months, among them those with amputations and extensive burns.
The announcement occurred mere hours after Loomer published several social media posts denouncing the medical evacuations of Palestinian children to the U.S. In one such post, she shared a video clip of a child amputee arriving in a wheelchair at Seattle airport for medical care, adding, “The Trump administration needs to shut this abomination down ASAP.”
Loomer, who once identified herself as a “” and stated 9/11 was an “”,” propagated inaccuracies in her online posts, claiming she had dispatched her “evidence” to Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The halt was announced hours thereafter.
Rubio stated on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday that the measure was taken following “inquiries from multiple congressional offices seeking clarification.” However, Loomer swiftly claimed responsibility for the halt, declaring, “It’s amazing how fast we can get results from the Trump administration.”
The Palestinian Children Relief Fund (PCRF), a charitable organization facilitating medical evacuations of children to the U.S., indicated that this action would impede their ability to deliver “lifesaving medical treatment” to “critically ill children” from Gaza.
“Medical evacuations represent a vital lifeline for Gaza’s children, who would otherwise encounter immense suffering or succumb to death owing to the deterioration of Gaza’s medical infrastructure,” the PCRF stated. The (WHO) reports that Gaza’s healthcare system has collapsed, experiencing a “persistent and methodical destruction of hospitals.”
UNICEF, the United Nations children’s charity, reported in July that have been killed and 33,000 injured in Gaza over the past 21 months.
HEAL Palestine, another charitable group arranging evacuations and a specific target of Loomer’s posts, announced this month that it has transported 63 injured children and a total of 148 evacuees to the U.S. for medical care. Earlier in the month, it conducted the most extensive known evacuation of injured children from Gaza to the U.S., involving 11 children and their relatives, primarily for amputation treatments.
HEAL Palestine clarified on social media that the visas it uses to facilitate entry to the U.S. for treatment are designated for vital medical care, not for resettlement, contradicting Loomer’s assertions.
“Upon completion of their treatment, the children and any accompanying family members go back to the Middle East. This is a medical treatment initiative, not a refugee resettlement initiative,” the organization explained. The charity further noted that U.S. taxpayer funds do not cover the cost of treatment for these children.
Loomer, identified as a conspiracy theorist with a track record of employing hate speech to draw notice, has garnered considerable sway within the White House during President Donald Trump’s second term.
She has successfully advocated for the removal of individuals from key government positions whom she deems disloyal to the president, among them six members of the National Security Council, a high-ranking Customs and Border Protection official, and a Food and Drug Administration vaccine official.
TIME has reached out to the State Department for comment.
