The US State Department announced it will revoke the visa of Colombian President Gustavo Petro following remarks he made during a public appearance in New
York City earlier today. According to the department, Petro urged US soldiers to disobey orders and incited violence—actions officials have labeled “reckless and incendiary.” “Due to President Petro’s irresponsible conduct on U.S. soil, we will proceed with revoking his visa,” the department said in a statement released Friday.
Earlier today, Colombian president @petrogustavo stood on a NYC street and urged U.S. soldiers to disobey orders and incite violence.
— Department of State (@StateDept) September 27, 2025
We will revoke Petro’s visa due to his reckless and incendiary actions.
The State Department’s decision followed Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s unprecedented participation in a protest on the streets of New York City against the Gaza conflict. As the first sitting world leader to protest on US soil, Petro called for the establishment of an international army to protect the Palestinian people during his speech to the crowd. Petro also urged US soldiers to defy President Trump and refuse to aim their weapons at the people.
Gustavo Petro Slams Trump, Calls For Military Action In Gaza
The visa controversy came after Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s fiery speech at the United Nations General Assembly, where he called for US President Donald Trump to face “criminal proceedings” over US strikes targeting suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean. Petro condemned the strikes, which Washington described as part of an anti-drug operation off Venezuela’s coast, a country whose president the US accuses of leading a cartel.
According to Petro, the attacks resulted in the deaths of unarmed “poor young people.” UN experts have labeled these strikes, which killed more than a dozen individuals across at least three boats, as “extrajudicial executions.”
Addressing the ongoing conflict in Gaza, Petro declared, “Humanity must stop the genocide in Gaza; it cannot allow another day of massacre, nor can it let Netanyahu and his allies in the United States and Europe escape accountability.”
Building on the recent wave of international recognition for a Palestinian state, Petro went further by proposing the creation of an international task force to halt the violence in Palestine. He criticized diplomatic efforts, stating, “Diplomacy has already played its role in Gaza and has failed to resolve the crisis. I apologize to Macron, but it is unacceptable to keep talking while missiles destroy the bodies of innocent children every second. Each passing day brings more bombings; every veto by the Security Council means more destruction and more deaths.”
