US to revoke Colombian President's visa over 'inciteful, reckless' comments at pro-Palestine protest

Published on 27/09/2025 - 9:05 GMT+2

The United States said it would revoke Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s visa aft he urged soldiers to disobey US President Donald Trump’s orders during a pro-Palestine objection successful New York connected Friday.

The comments came arsenic nan Colombian leader visited nan metropolis to participate successful nan UN General Assembly High-level week, group to adjacent connected Saturday.

The US Department of State said successful a station connected X that President Petro “stood connected a NYC thoroughfare and urged US soldiers to disobey orders and incite violence. We will revoke Petro’s visa owed to his reckless and incendiary actions.”

Petro, speaking successful Spanish to a crowd of demonstrators campaigning for Palestinians amid Israel’s almost 2 twelvemonth violative connected Gaza, called for a world equipped unit “bigger than that of nan United States” to beryllium established, pinch nan privilege of “liberating Palestinians”.

"That's why from here, from New York, I inquire each nan soldiers of nan service of nan United States not to constituent their guns astatine people. Disobey nan orders of Trump. Obey nan orders of humanity," said Petro astatine nan protestation held extracurricular nan UN office successful Manhattan.

According to section media reports, nan Colombian president was already en way to his country’s capital, Bogota, connected Friday nighttime erstwhile nan State Department announced his visa’s revocation.

Earlier, Petro shared a video connected his X floor plan of him addressing protesters pinch a megaphone, successful which he called for a continued stance against what he called a genocide unfolding successful Gaza.

The Colombian leader has been vocal against Israel’s behaviour of warfare successful Gaza, nearing its 2 twelvemonth mark, successful which astatine slightest 65,659 Palestinians were killed, according to figures published by Gaza’s Health Ministry.

In his UN reside to nan General Assembly this week, Petro targeted nan US leader connected Tuesday, calling him “complicit successful genocide”.

The country’s Interior Minister, Armando Benedetti, slammed Washington for revoking Petro’s visa, and successful a station connected X, said nan action was politically motivated, calling nan Colombian president 1 of nan fewer who “dared to denounce nan genocide against Palestine astatine nan UN”.

Benedetti besides accused nan US of protecting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, alternatively suggesting that his visa should beryllium revoked.

“But they protect Netanyahu. Petro dared to show nan truth to nan look of nan United States and nan world,” said Benedetti.

Petro has been astatine likelihood pinch his US counterpart connected respective occasions since Trump returned to nan Oval Office connected 20 January. Earlier this year, Petro accused Trump of treating Colombians for illustration criminals arsenic nan caller US management looked to crackdown connected forbidden migration.

He besides refused to judge Colombian citizens expelled by Trump’s migration raids, but has since reversed course, agreeing to judge nan migrants.

More recently, he denounced Trump’s attacks successful nan Pacific against what nan White House says are “drug boats”, calling for “criminal proceedings” complete those attacks, which he says whitethorn person killed Colombians.