RAMALLAH, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- A senior Palestinian official condemned on Sunday the U.S. decision to revoke the visas of Palestinian Ambassador Husam Zomlot, his wife and two children which were valid until 2020.
"This vindictive action by the Trump administration is spiteful, as if the announcement that the U.S. would close our office in Washington was not enough," Hanan Ashrawi, a member of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee, said in an official statement.
The United States attempted to pressure and blackmail the Palestinians to a new level, she added.
The U.S. government "has gone from cruel punishment to revenge the Palestinians and their leadership," Ashrawi noted.
"Instead of working for a genuine peace, the U.S. is destroying the chances of peace and undermining its own credibility and standing on all levels," she warned.
On Tuesday, the U.S. government informed staff at the PLO General Delegation Office in Washington of the guidelines for closing down the office.
The employees were ordered to cease all operations, close down all their bank accounts, and leave the United States before Oct. 13.
Ties between the Palestinian Authority and the United States have almost been severed since U.S. President Donald Trump declared Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in December 2017.
