Overview

• The General Assembly approved the exception by a vote of 145 of 193 member states, including Germany, allowing a prerecorded speech to be played in the hall next week.
• The measure also authorizes Abbas to deliver a video address to a conference on a two-state solution on Monday.
• Abbas’s video speech for the General Debate is scheduled for Thursday during the high-level week in New York.
• The United States had revoked visas for Abbas and roughly 80 Palestinian Authority representatives and said it would not issue new travel documents.
• U.S. officials justified the move on security grounds, and the decision raised host-country questions because Washington normally facilitates entry for UN delegates and in-person speeches are standard.