The U.S. State Department on Friday announced it will revoke the visa of Colombian President, Gustavo Petro, due to his “incendiary actions” during a pro-Palestinian street protest in New York.
The department claimed Petro urged U.S. soldiers to disobey orders and incite violence.
During the protest, Petro addressed a large crowd, calling on nations to contribute soldiers for an army larger than the U.S. military.
He specifically asked US soldiers not to point their rifles at humanity, saying “Disobey Trump’s order! Obey the order of humanity!”
This statement was made through a megaphone and translated for the crowd.
The U.S. State Department swiftly condemned Petro’s actions, stating that his behaviour was reckless and incendiary.
“We will revoke Petro’s visa due to his reckless and incendiary actions,” the department said in a post on X.
The move highlighted strained relations between the U.S. and Colombia under Petro’s leftist leadership.
The countries have historically been allies, but tensions have risen since Petro took office.
Recently, the Trump administration decertified Colombia as an ally in the fight against drugs, although no economic sanctions were imposed.
Before the protest, Petro attended the UN General Assembly, where he criticised the Trump administration and called for a criminal inquiry into U.S. strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean.
The strikes, which resulted in over a dozen deaths, were part of a U.S. anti-drug operation off Venezuela’s coast.
Petro suspected that some of those killed were Colombian.
Colombia’s Interior Minister Armando Benedetti responded to the visa revocation, suggesting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visa should have been revoked instead.
Benedetti implied that the U.S. protected Netanyahu due to his influence, while taking action against Petro for speaking truth to power.
