United States Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Wednesday categorically rejected reports suggesting that the security fallout from the thwarted flydubai hijacking attempt could jeopardize visa-free travel privileges for Israelis entering the United States.
“Contrary to fake reports circulating across media channels, there is absolutely no change to the visa waiver for Israelis traveling to the United States,” Ambassador Huckabee stated definitively.
The ambassador’s clarification follows a Tuesday report by Channel 12 alleging that an official American delegation was scheduled to visit Israel to evaluate whether the country still complies with security benchmarks under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP), raising the specter of a formal review of the program.
The speculation was triggered by screening oversights that allowed an Omani first officer suspected of plotting to hijack and crash the aircraft into Israel to be rostered as an active crew member on an inbound flight to Tel Aviv.
In recent days, the incident sparked intense inter-agency debate and reciprocal accusations regarding operational protocols for screening foreign flight crews and passenger manifests entering Israeli airspace. The American ambassador’s statement, however, firmly underscores that from Washington’s perspective, Israel’s standing within the Visa Waiver Program remains fully secure and unaltered.