The Trump administration announced on Tuesday that it was extending travel restrictions to the Palestinian Authority and 20 other countries, tripling the number of countries impacted by the broad limitations on immigration and travel to the United States that were announced earlier this year.
The Trump administration slapped new restrictions on 15 other nations and added five more nations to the list of nations with a complete travel ban to the United States, along with anybody traveling with passports issued by the Palestinian Authority.
The action is a part of the administration’s ongoing efforts to tighten immigration and travel requirements in the US, which opponents claim unfairly prohibits travel for individuals from a wide range of nations. Following the arrest of an Afghan national suspected of shooting two National Guard soldiers over Thanksgiving weekend, the government hinted that it may broaden the limitations.
The limits do not apply to those who already hold visas, are lawful permanent residents of the United States, fall under specific visa categories, such as sports or diplomats, or whose presence into the nation is thought to promote the interests of the United States. According to the proclamation, the modifications take effect on January 1.
President Donald Trump declared in June that travel to the US would be prohibited for nationals of twelve nations and restricted for those from seven more. A key policy from his first administration was revived by the ruling.
Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen were all prohibited at the time, and travel from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela was subject to stricter regulations.
The Republican administration declared on Tuesday that Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan, and Syria would be added to the list of nations whose residents are prohibited from entering the United States. In the most recent US travel ban against Palestinians, the government also completely prohibited travel for those having travel documents issued by the Palestinian Authority. Significant travel restrictions were already in place in South Sudan.
Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Ivory Coast, Dominica, Gabon, Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are among the fifteen more nations that will be subject to partial limitations.
Both visitors and prospective immigrants to the US are subject to the limitations.
In its announcement, the Trump administration claimed that it was difficult to screen inhabitants of several of the nations from which it was limiting travel due to “widespread corruption, fraudulent or unreliable civil documents and criminal records.”
Additionally, it stated that certain nations had a “general lack of stability and government control,” which made vetting challenging, high rates of overstaying visas, or refused to return persons that the US wanted to deport. Concerns about national security, foreign policy, and immigration enforcement were also mentioned as reasons for the action.
The Afghan man who is suspected of shooting the two National Guard soldiers close to the White House has entered a not guilty plea to charges of assault and murder. Following that incident, the administration imposed a series of immigration restrictions, including additional limitations on individuals from those first 19 nations who were already in the United States.
Critics who claim that the administration is using national security concerns to collectively bar people from a wide range of nations are sure to fiercely oppose the news of the widening travel ban.
Laurie Ball Cooper, deputy president of US Legal Programs at the International Refugee Assistance Project, stated, “This expanded ban is not about national security but rather is another shameful attempt to demonize people simply for where they are from.”
The revised travel ban no longer includes an exemption for Afghans who are eligible for the Special Immigrant Visa, which alarmed advocates for Afghans who backed the United States’ two-decade war in Afghanistan on Tuesday. That particular visa category is reserved for Afghans who actively and dangerously supported the US combat effort.
An organization that has long supported the Special Immigrant Visa program, No One Left Behind, expressed “deep concern” over the shift. The group stated that while it valued the president’s dedication to national security, allowing Afghans who have served in the US to enter the country following rigorous screening also enhances national security.
The organization stated in a statement, “This policy change unintentionally restricts those who are among the most rigorously vetted in our history: the wartime allies targeted by the terrorists this proclamation seeks to address, even though it is intended to allow for review of inconsistent vetting processes.”
Late on Tuesday, nations that had recently been added to the list of prohibited or restricted nations stated that they were assessing the information. The administration of the Caribbean Sea island nation of Dominica stated that it was handling the matter with the “utmost seriousness and urgency” and that it was contacting US officials to explain the limits and resolve any issues.
Ronald Saunders, the ambassador of Antigua and Barbuda to the US, stated that the “matter is quite serious” and that he will be asking US officials for further details about the new limitations.
Additionally, the Trump administration strengthened restrictions on a number of nations that had previously been on the partially restricted list, such as Laos and Sierra Leone. In one instance, Turkmenistan, the administration claimed that the country had made enough progress to justify loosening some restrictions on visitors from that nation. According to the administration, all other travel restrictions that were previously issued in June are still in effect.
The government placed limitations on Palestinians months ago, making it practically hard for anybody with a passport issued by the Palestinian Authority to obtain travel permits to enter the United States for employment, leisure, business, or study. The announcement on Tuesday goes one step further and prohibits those holding passports issued by the Palestinian Authority from immigrating to the United States.
The administration cited a number of “US-designated terrorist groups operate actively in the West Bank or Gaza Strip and have murdered American citizens” to support its decision on Tuesday. The recent conflict in those regions “likely resulted in compromised vetting and screening abilities,” according to the administration.
