In a statement Sunday, Heal Palestine said it was “distressed” by the State Department’s decision, and that it is “a medical treatment program, not a refugee resettlement program.” The organization’s founder, Steve Sosebee, shared a photo with two child amputees, one of whom also lost his parents in a bombing, who Heal Palestine relocated to the US for medical treatment. The Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, another American nonprofit founded by Sosebee, called the State Department’s decision “dangerous and inhumane,” adding, “Blocking visa access for the wounded and sick children of Gaza is not merely a bureaucratic measure, it is a denial of their most basic right to access medical care.” Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations Nihad Awad said the decision “is the latest sign that the intentional cruelty of President Trump’s ‘Israel First’ administration knows no bounds.” On CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told host Margaret Brennan that the decision to halt the visas followed “outreach from multiple congressional offices,” adding that the State Department is “going to reevaluate how those visas are being granted, not just to the children, but how those visas are being granted to the people who are accompanying them.” In an X post on Friday, Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) responded to Loomer’s posts, saying he was “deeply concerned about the incoming flights—including to Texas—allegedly filled with folks from Gaza,” adding that he was “inquiring.” Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) also chimed in after Roy did, posting on X, “Oh, hell no!”
Author: Julianne McShane
Published at: 2025-08-17 20:42:18
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