LOCKED OUT

U.S. Denies 20 Iranians Entry

Will not be able to attend General Assembly.

Better luck next time. The United States has denied visas to 20 Iranian government officials who had planned to attend the U.N. General Assembly. No reason was given for the denials, but some Iranian officials face travel bans due to sanctions regarding Iran’s nuclear program. The Iranian delegation requested 160 visas, and at least two unnamed government ministers were among those turned down. The U.S. has a policy of issuing visas for members of delegations to the U.N., but it has been known to deny entry to officials from Iran in the past. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is scheduled to give his final speech to the U.N. on Wednesday.