{"id":44259,"date":"2025-09-29T12:11:48","date_gmt":"2025-09-29T19:11:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=44259"},"modified":"2025-09-29T12:11:49","modified_gmt":"2025-09-29T19:11:49","slug":"petro-calls-for-moving-un-hq-after-trump-admin-revokes-his-visa-over-protest-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2025\/09\/29\/petro-calls-for-moving-un-hq-after-trump-admin-revokes-his-visa-over-protest-speech\/","title":{"rendered":"Petro Calls for Moving UN HQ After Trump Admin Revokes His Visa Over Protest Speech"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Colombian<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Colombian President Gustavo Petro addresses the United Nations General Assembly on September 23, 2025 in New York City. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Photo by United Nations\/screen grab)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat the US government is doing to me breaks all the norms of immunity on which the functioning of the United Nations and its General Assembly is based,\u201d Petro said.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

OLIVIA ROSANE<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sep 27, 2025 (CommonDreams.org_<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Trump administration on Friday revoked left-wing Colombian President Gustavo Petro\u2019s visa after he spoke to crowds of protesters in New York City, urging US soldiers not to point their guns at innocent civilians and to disobey the orders of US President Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The US State Department wrote<\/a> on social media on Friday that Petro had \u201curged US soldiers to disobey orders and incite violence\u201d and that it would revoked Petro\u2019s visa \u201cdue to his reckless and incendiary actions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cMr. Trump has violated the founding principles of the UN,\u201d Petro wrote<\/a> on social media Saturday in response to the news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Petro, who was in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), criticized<\/a> Trump in a speech before the UN on Tuesday, in which he called him \u201ccomplicit in genocide\u201d for backing Israel\u2019s war on Gaza<\/a> and urged<\/a> the UN to open criminal proceedings against Trump\u2019s air strikes<\/a> on boats in the Caribbean alleged to be transporting drugs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is the first time the US revokes a head of state\u2019s visa for comments made during a UNGA visit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the Colombian leader had returned to his home country by the time he learned his visa had been revoked, he condemned the move as a major breach of international law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat the US government is doing to me breaks all the norms of immunity on which the functioning of the United Nations and its General Assembly is based,\u201d Petro wrote<\/a> on social media on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He pointed out that heads of state attending UN proceedings are supposed to receive total immunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe fact that the Palestinian Authority was not allowed entry and that my visa was revoked for asking the US and Israeli armies not to support a genocide, which is a crime against all of humanity, demonstrates that the US government no longer complies with international law,\u201d Petro continued. \u201cThe United Nations headquarters cannot continue to be in New York.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Petro was not the only one to question whether the UN could continue to meet in the US after the Trump administration\u2019s actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is the first time the US revokes a head of state\u2019s visa for comments made during a UNGA visit,\u201d Center for Economic and Policy Research senior research fellow Francisco Rodr\u00edguez pointed out<\/a> on social media. \u201cBoth [Fidel] Castro and [Hugo] Ch\u00e1vez gave fiery off-site speeches in NY without retaliation. The action undermines the UN\u2019s viability as a global forum and risks violating the 1947 HQ Agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The agreement states<\/a> in part that those granted immunity to attend UN gatherings \u201cshall not be required to leave the United States otherwise than in accordance with the customary procedure\u201d applied to all diplomats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Craig Mokhiber, a human rights lawyer and former UN official, wrote<\/a>: \u201cThis is just the latest breach of the obligations of the US to the UN. Member states must get serious about moving the UN to a safer host country. And the US-Israel axis must be held accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Israel\u2019s nearly two-year assault on the Gaza Strip, which several human rights experts and bodies including a UN commission have named<\/a> a genocide, was a key point of contention during the 80th session of the UNGA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Petro emerged as a major voice in defense of the Palestinians in Gaza, calling for the creation of an international armed force to enter Gaza and end the genocide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He repeated that call when he spoke to protesters outside the UN on Friday, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was scheduled<\/a> to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is necessary to configure a more powerful army than that of the United States and\u00a0Israel<\/a>\u00a0combined,\u201d Petro\u00a0told<\/a>\u00a0the crowd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

TODAY: Colombian President Gustavo Petro joined thousands outside the UN during Netanyahu\u2019s speech, protesting for an arms embargo on Israel.

President Petro told the crowd he is calling for a powerful international army to stop the Gaza genocide and urged the world to move\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/FQ4pg9qTO5<\/a><\/p>— BreakThrough News (@BTnewsroom) September 26, 2025<\/a><\/blockquote>