President Trump on Wednesday announced travel bans barring nationals from 12 countries from entering the United States. Another seven countries were also placed under travel restrictions, though not outright bans, NBC News reports. The restrictions, which hearken back to travel bans on Muslim-majority countries Trump instituted during his first term, go into effect Monday.
- The bans apply to those from Afghanistan, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
- The partial restrictions apply to those from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
- Exemptions will be in place for lawful permanent residents of the US, Afghan Special Immigrant visa holders, diplomatic visa holders, immediate family member immigrant visa holders, and "ethnic and religious minorities in Iran." Exceptions will also be made for adoptions, dual nationals as long as they travel using a passport from an unrestricted country, and athletes coming into the US for the World Cup or Olympics.
The White House says the restrictions are necessary for national security reasons, and that they are an effort to keep "dangerous foreign actors" from getting in to the country, Fox News reports. In his announcement, Trump specifically cited the recent attack on a Jewish event in Boulder, which was allegedly carried out by an Egyptian national who overstayed his visa. The White House says some of the affected countries don't have a robust enough vetting and screening process for those planning to come to the US, and that others frequently failed to accept their citizens' returns or had "unacceptable" visa overstay rates. The partial restrictions include the suspension of several visa programs for the affected countries.
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