The Trump administration is finalising an expanded travel ban for citizens of certain countries, which could come into effect as soon as next week, according to the latest reports. President Donald Trump is reportedly preparing to revive and expand his travel ban, potentially restricting citizens from several countries from travelling to the United States. The ban is set to include more countries than what the president previously implemented during his first term, The New York Times and Reuters reported.
Following Trump’s issuing an executive order in January directing Cabinet members to create a list of countries that should face full or partial travel restrictions, a draft recommendation is now circulating, with a list of nations whose citizens could be banned from entering the US. The list is expected to include most of the countries targeted in his previous travel bans, including Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are expected to be added to this “red list”.
Countries designated as “orange” will face limited access, while “yellow” countries will have 60 days to address any “deficiencies” before restrictions are imposed.
This could have serious implications for then hundreds of thousands of Afghans who have been approved for Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) after aiding US forces during the 20-year war in Afghanistan.
#AfghanEvac, a coalition of groups working to help coordinate resettlement with the US government, released a statement this week that said: “If you have a valid US visa in your passport or travel document, you should make travel arrangements immediately.
“Nothing has officially changed yet, but sources within the US Government indicate that a travel ban for Afghan nationals may be announced within the next week.”
The exact details and list of countries to be affected will soon be finalised.
Back in 2017, Trump implemented a first travel ban, which the courts blocked.
Although the courts blocked the first two versions of the travel ban, the Supreme Court ultimately allowed a third revised ban to take effect, which impacted around 7% of the global population.
