The two men are Palestinian passport holders, reported the San Francisco Chronicle, which have long been recognized as travel documents by U.S. officials, though not as proof of citizenship. The U.S. does not recognize the Palestinian Authority, a governing body in the part of the Palestinian territories where the men are from, as a government, nor the territories as a state.
Masafer Yatta, the village where the men are from, was recently depicted in “No Other Land,” the Best Documentary Oscar winner in 2025, which captured clashes between residents and Israeli settlers.
Linder said the men were told they would be deported back to the West Bank, likely through Jordan, on Thursday. They were not given a reason for their revoked visas, he said, which sets a “terrible precedent.”
“People with valid tourist visas to the United States that can be arbitrarily denied entry because of their skin color, because of their last name … their Palestinian peoplehood, that is a huge precedent that may be very dangerous for anyone that doesn’t look like the current [Make America Great Again] regime,” he said.
Customs and Border Patrol did not respond to requests for comment by publication time.
As long as Hthaleen and Alhadlin are in San Francisco, “Activists who support them — Christians, Jews and Muslims — will be out here,” Linder told KQED.
KQED’s Juan Carlos Lara contributed to this report.
