The US State Department has announced a strict travel ban on Syria’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Bashar jaafari, saying he cannot leave the five boroughs of New York City anymore.
The State Department declined to discuss the details of the matter, but the announcement comes after complaints from pro-rebel Syrian-Americans that the ambassador had traveled around the US on a “propaganda tour” for the Assad government.
The announcement is unusual but not unprecedented, as the State Department has imposed similar restrictions on the UN Ambassadors from North Korea and Iran.
It would be extremely unusual for the State Department to impose such a restriction entirely to prevent an ambassador from making speeches inside the United States, and while they haven’t confirmed this as the reason, there has been no suggestion of an alternative justification.
Bashar Jaafari is an extremely impressive and articulate figure. No wonder the rebels have complained. It is that much more difficult for them since the facts are generally on the Syrian government's side.
So the matter that the Second World War consequences regarding Japanese national being prisoned for being Japanese is taking shape by limiting the ambassadors movement and then the Syrian national living in America, later the Iranian, Russian and down the line Chinese.
Can you imagine the screams that would occur should another country, lets say Russia, were to limit the US ambassador in such a way?