Rights groups sue US over lack of transparency on Israel's entry into visa waiver programme
Several rights and civil liberties groups on Friday filed a lawsuit in US court demanding that the American government comply with a request for information regarding the recent agreement to allow Israel into the visa waiver programme.
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, submitted in October by the law firm Van Der Hout LLP, sought information from several federal agencies on Israel's memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the US, which entered the country into the US's visa waiver initiative.
The firm said it received no information regarding its request and had not heard from the Biden administration since November.
"In 2023, the US government shirked its duty by entering into an undisclosed Memorandum of Understanding permitting Israel to create and impose a two-tiered discriminatory system: one for Palestinian Americans, and another for everyone else," Johnny Sinodis, partner at Van Der Hout, said in a statement shared with MEE.
"Our community members and the American public have an unequivocal right to know the terms of that Memorandum of Understanding, and this lawsuit will ensure that their right is fulfilled."
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Last September, the Biden administration announced it was allowing Israel into the coveted visa waiver programme, which would give Israeli citizens visa-free travel into the US for up to 90 days. Similarly, the programme requires that US citizens be given the same privilege when travelling to Israel.
Prior to its acceptance into the programme, the US held a trial period to examine whether Americans entering Israel were discriminated against when entering the country.
Palestinians, rights experts, and lawmakers all expressed concerns that Israel was not in compliance because it continued discriminating against Palestinian Americans at points of entry.
'Carte blanche approach to Israel'
The lawsuit was filed with the help of several groups including the National Immigration Project, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, and Muslim Advocates.
The groups noted that the lawsuit highlights a pattern of lack of oversight from the US government when it comes to Israeli government policies.
"This administration entered into an MoU with the Government of Israel that discriminates against Palestinian Americans," Diala Shamas, senior staff attorney at CCR, said in a statement.
"It is yet another example of the Biden administration’s carte blanche approach to Israel’s flagrant violations of the law that long predated Israel’s assault on Gaza."
The filing also highlights the double standard between how the US treats Israeli citizens versus Palestinians.
Earlier this month, Middle East Eye reported on how Palestinian Americans were struggling to get their relatives out of Gaza because of restrictions set by the US State Department.
Dozens of US citizens have tried to get their family members out of the enclave, many of whom are in direct harm's way, but their relatives don't fit the categories of who is allowed out.
"The gatekeeper for Americans is the United States government, it's the State Department," Sammy Nabulsi, a lawyer working on these cases, previously told MEE.
"There's no attention given to case-by-case situations that really do need some flexibility on the part of the State Department just from a human perspective. Again, the people making the asks are US citizens."
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