WASHINGTON (AP) — As the Israel-Hamas battle intensifies, the United States Thursday launched a visa waiver program permitting Israelis wishing to go to the United States for 90 days or much less to come back with out making use of for a visa.
The U.S. introduced Sept. 27 that it was admitting Israel into the visa waiver program, including the nation to a choose group of 40 principally European and Asian international locations whose residents can journey to the U.S. for 3 months with out visas.
At the time, the U.S. mentioned Israelis may begin touring to America with out visas as of November 30. In a information launch, the Department of Homeland Security mentioned this system was operational as of Thursday.
Officials gave no motive for the modified timeline in a information launch Thursday. But simply days after Israel’s admittance to the visa waiver program, Hamas launched assaults towards quite a few areas in southern Israel. Since then the Israeli army has relentlessly attacked areas within the Gaza Strip because it prepares for a floor invasion.
Under the waiver program, Israelis first register with the Electronic System for Travel Authorization. That’s an automatic system that helps decide whether or not the particular person is eligible to journey, Homeland Security mentioned within the information launch. The course of can take as much as 72 hours. Then they’ll journey to the U.S.
To be eligible, Israelis should have a biometrically enabled passport. Those who don’t have such a passport nonetheless should apply for a U.S. visa, the division mentioned.
Countries that need to participate within the visa program have to satisfy three important benchmarks. Israel met two of these benchmarks over the previous two years: a low share of Israelis who utilized for visas and had been rejected and a low share of Israelis who’ve overstayed their visas. Israel had struggled to satisfy the third, for reciprocity that primarily means all U.S. residents, together with Palestinian Americans, have to be handled equally when touring to or by Israel.
Many critics mentioned that regardless of American assertions, Palestinian Americans had been nonetheless dealing with discrimination when touring to Israel.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”