The U.S. State Department on Saturday halted the issuance of all visitor visas for individuals from Gaza, saying it will conduct “a full and thorough” review of the process that recently allowed a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas. The pause applies to B1/B2 visitor visas as well as short-term humanitarian permits issued in recent days. An analysis of department data shows the United States has granted more than 3,800 B1/B2 visas this year to holders of Palestinian Authority travel documents, including 640 in May. The latest suspension follows social-media posts by far-right activist Laura Loomer alleging newly arrived Palestinian families were entering the country, a claim that prompted Republican lawmakers such as Representative Chip Roy to question potential security risks. Advocacy groups warn the move could strand wounded or chronically ill Palestinian children who rely on treatment unavailable in the Gaza Strip. The Council on American-Islamic Relations denounced the step as “intentional cruelty,” while the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund said it would have a “devastating and irreversible impact” on its work to bring patients to U.S. hospitals. The policy shift comes against the backdrop of Israel’s nearly two-year offensive in Gaza, launched after Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023 attacks that killed about 1,200 people in Israel and led to 251 hostages being taken. Gaza health officials say the war has since claimed more than 61,000 Palestinian lives, intensifying pressure on medical and humanitarian corridors even as Washington signals no broader plan to accept displaced Gazans.