The administration of Donald Trump has formally halted all immigration applications, including those for green cards and U.S. citizenship, submitted by individuals from 19 non-European nations, according to claims related to national security and public safety concerns.
The break, which began on Tuesday, affects individuals from 19 countries that had previously faced a limited travel restriction in June, adding more limitations to immigration – a central aspect of the President’s policies.Donald Trump’s political platform.
The list of nations comprisesAfghanistan and Somalia.
However, the Trump administration is also exploring the possibility of extending the travel restriction to over 30 nations,according to the New York Post.
The official document detailing the new policy references the assault on U.S. National Guard personnel in Washington last week, in whichA male from Afghanistan has been taken into custodyas a person under suspicion. One member of the National Guard was killed and another was seriously injured in the shooting.
Trump has also increased his verbal attacks on Somalis in recent days, referring to them as ‘scum’ and stating ‘we don’t want them in our country.’
The president also criticized the previous presidentJoe Biden for letting unauthorized immigrants flood into the United States- asserting that he permitted the Afghan shooting suspect to enter the United States during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal.
He subsequently stated in a Truth Social update on Thursday evening that he will ‘temporarily halt immigration from all developing nations to enable the U.S. system to completely recover.’
Then on Monday, State Secretary Kristi Noemrevealed plansfor a comprehensive travel restriction on nations that are exporting ‘killers, leeches, and individuals with excessive claims.’
After coming back to power in January, Trump has strongly focused on immigration enforcement,dispatching federal agents to major American cities and denying asylum applicants at the US-Mexico frontier. His administration has often emphasized the deportation initiative but so far has placed less focus on initiatives aimed at reforming legal immigration.
The wave of announced restrictions following the attack on National Guard personnel indicates a stronger emphasis on legal immigration, centered on safeguarding national security and attributing responsibility to former President Joe Biden’s policies.
The list of nations mentioned in Tuesday’s memorandum consists of Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen, which faced the strictest immigration controls in June, with a complete halt on arrivals except for limited exceptions.
Other nations included in the list of 19 countries that faced limited restrictions in June are Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
The updated policy suspends ongoing applications and requires all immigrants from the specified list to go through a comprehensive reassessment, which may involve an interview and, if needed, a follow-up interview, in order to thoroughly evaluate any potential national security and public safety risks.
The document referenced multiple recent crimes that are believed to have been carried out by immigrants, including the National Guard incident.
Sharvari Dalal-Dheini, the senior director of government relations at the American Immigration Lawyers Association, mentioned that the group has received reports about canceled oath ceremonies, naturalization interviews, and status adjustment meetings for people from nations included in the travel ban.
This is a developing news story and will be updated.
Read more
- Did President Trump restart his contentious travel restrictions, excluding individuals from 19 nations due to screening issues?
- Is a major immigration reform by Trump set to cancel thousands of green cards from 19 ‘countries of concern’ after a devastating terrorist incident?
- Which contentious ‘national security’ policy did Trump revive, imposing broad travel bans on 12 countries?
- What are the contentious effects of Trump’s latest executive orders that prohibit foreign individuals from attending US universities and limit visitors from 19 nations?
- Could Trump’s suggested immigration ban hold the solution for security? In the wake of a National Guard tragedy, Trump promises to stop migration from Third World Nations.
