Sen. Cruz Introduces S. 2195 to Prevent Terrorists From Entering U.S. as U.N. Ambassadors
Responds to Iran naming known U.S. hostage-taker as U.N. Ambassador
WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, today introduced legislation, S. 2195, to prevent known terrorists from obtaining visas to enter the United States as ambassadors to the United Nations.
“It is unconscionable that, in the name of international diplomatic protocol, the United States would be forced to host a foreign national who showed a brutal disregard for the status of our diplomats when they were stationed in his country,” Sen. Cruz said.
Iranian President Hasan Rouhani recently named Hamid Aboutalebi as the nation’s new ambassador to the U.N., which is headquartered in Manhattan. A visa application to allow him to enter the United States has been duly filed.
Aboutalebi was a member of The Muslim Students Following the Imam’s Line, the group that held 52 Americans hostage in Tehran for 444 days from 1979-81. The organization is still active and his photo is currently featured on its official website that celebrates the hostage crisis.
###
