The new proclamation is an addition to earlier list of 19 countries, which faced either complete travel ban or partial entry restrictions. With the additions, the list has been expanded to as many as 39 countries and includes Palestinians and Syrians.
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed a proclamation imposing a complete travel ban on seven more countries and Palestinians, and entry restrictions on 15 others citing national security, public safety, weak vetting systems and high visa overstay rates. With this, 20 additional countries have been added to the list where America has imposed a travel ban or entry restrictions, thereby expanding the same to a total of 39 nations.
According to a White House fact-sheet, the new proclamation imposed a travel ban on five countries – Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan, and Syria. Those holding Palestinian Authority-issued travel documents (Palestinians to be precise) have also been included in the list. Besides, the proclamation imposed a complete travel ban on Laos and Sierra Leone, which were previously subject to partial entry restrictions.
The expanded ban and restrictions are set to take effect on January 1.
The announcement came two weeks after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that the Trump administration is planning to widen its current travel ban from 19 to over 30 countries. She, at the time, had not confirmed the exact number or mentioned the names of the countries.
The US has already banned travel from 12 countries – Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
The latest move by the Trump administration marks a sharp escalation in the immigration crackdown, following the November 26 killing of two National Guard members in Washington DC. The attacker, an Afghan national who once worked with a CIA-linked unit, entered the US after the 2021 withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan and was granted asylum earlier this year after vetting. The Trump administration has pointed to the case to press for tighter immigration controls.
Furthermore, it came after two US soldiers and an American civilian interpreter were killed in an Islamic State ambush attack in Syria on December 13.
PARTIAL ENTRY RESTRICTIONS ON 15 NEW NATIONS
The latest proclamation introduced partial restrictions on 15 more countries – Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Cte d’Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Partial entry restrictions will continue for nationals of Burundi, Cuba, Togo and Venezuela.
Turkmenistan is the sole country to see a partial easing under the new order. The proclamation has lifted restrictions on non-immigrant visas for Turkmenistan nationals.
REASONS BEHIND FRESH CRACKDOWN
The White House cited terrorist activity, internal conflict and high visa overstay rates as major factors behind the latest decision. Countries such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Nigeria were flagged for active terrorist threats, while others were highlighted for high rates of B-1/B-2 and student visa overstays, according to the Department of Homeland Security reports.
Syria was singled out for lacking “an adequate central authority for issuing passports or civil documents” after years of civil unrest.
“The restrictions and limitations imposed by the Proclamation are necessary to prevent the entry of foreign nationals about whom the United States lacks sufficient information to assess the risks they pose, garner cooperation from foreign governments, enforce our immigration laws, and advance other important foreign policy, national security, and counterterrorism objectives,” the White House fact-sheet said.
