U.S. tightens watch for eight countries

Homeland Security says those nations can’t meet security standards

WASHINGTON — Citizens of eight countries will face new restrictions on entry to the U.S. under a proclamation signed by President Donald Trump on Sunday.

The new rules, which will impact the citizens of Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen, will go into effect on Oct. 18.

The restrictions rage from full travel bans on nationals from countries like Syria to more targeted restrictions. A suspension of nonimmigrant visas to citizens for Venezuela, for instance, applies only to senior government officials and their immediate families.

The announcement comes the same day as Trump’s temporary ban on visitors from six Muslim-majority countries is set to expire, 90 days after it went into effect. That ban had barred citizens of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen who lack a “credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States” from entering the U.S.

“As president, I must act to protect the security and interests of the United States and its people,” reads the proclamation.

Officials stressed that valid visas would not be revoked as a result of the proclamation. The order also permits, but does not guarantee, case-by-case waivers.

The restrictions are targeted at countries that Department of Homeland Security officials say refuse to share information with the United States or haven’t taken necessary security precautions.

“The acting secretary has recommended actions that are tough and that are tailored, including restrictions and enhanced screening for certain countries,” said Miles Taylor, counsellor to acting Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke, said Friday.

Unlike Trump’s first travel ban, which sparked chaos at airports across the country and a flurry of legal challenges, officials said they had been working for months on the new rules, in collaboration with various agencies and in conversation with foreign governments. The restrictions are based on new baseline of Homeland Security that includes factors such as whether countries issue electronic passports with biometric data and share information about travellers’ terror-related and criminal histories.

The eight countries are those that refused or were unable to comply.