The Palestinian Authority has submitted dozens of visa applications for entry into the US, testing Washington’s plan to again bar PA President Mahmoud Abbas from attending the UN General Assembly later this month, a US official and a Palestinian official told The Times of Israel on Monday.

While a US official told The Times of Israel last month that President Donald Trump’s administration planned to bar Abbas’s entry for the second year in a row, a Palestinian official said Ramallah was told it could still submit applications for adjudication.

Abbas is scheduled to speak on September 24, the same day as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

But last year, Abbas gave his speech via video link due to the entry ban, which Washington said was in response to purported steps taken by the PA to undermine prospects for peace.

Washington didn’t elaborate at the time on its specific grievances with Ramallah, and the move was seen as part of an effort to undermine a conference that France and Saudi Arabia were hosting ahead of the General Assembly’s high-level week that was aimed at promoting a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

PA officials are also seeking meetings with American counterparts while stateside later this month, but that will at least partially depend on whether the entry ban is lifted.

Asked for comment on the matter, an aide to Abbas didn’t respond.

A State Department spokesperson said: “The Trump administration is protecting our nation and its citizens........

© The Times of Israel