United States President Donald Trump has signed an executive order imposing a full travel ban on people from 12 countries and restricting the citizens of seven other countries, the White House said.
The banned countries include Afghanistan, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
In addition to the ban, which was announced on Wednesday and takes effect on Monday, there will be heightened restrictions on people from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
“I must act to protect the national security and national interest of the United States and its people,” Trump said in his order.
In a video message released by the White House, Trump said the recent attack on a pro-Israel rally in Boulder, Colorado had “underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted”.
The president claimed there were “millions and millions of these illegals who should not be in our country”.
“We will not let what happened in Europe happen to America,” he said, adding, “very simply, we cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen those who seek to enter the United States”.
“We will not allow people to enter our country who wish to do us harm.” (Al Jazeera)
