Passengers barred from flights after visa ban
Two travel agencies in Iran claimed they had been instructed by Etihad Airways, Emirates and Turkish Airlines not to sell US tickets or allow Iranians holding American visas to board USbound flights. However, we were unable to clarify if these claims were true or not on Saturday.
When Khaleej Times spoke to a Qatar Airways spokesperson in the UAE, he said passengers were being urged to check the ‘travel alerts’ page on its website.
Under the heading, ‘Changes to entry requirements to the United States’, the Qatar Airways advisory read: “Nationals from these countries may travel to the US only if they are in possession of a permanent resident card (Green card) or any of the below visas: A1 & A2 (Government Officials and immediate family); C2 (Travel to UN); G1 & G2 (Representative & employees of international organisations); G3 & G4 (Representatives to and employees of international organisations); and Nato.”
It stated the advisory was issued “as per an Immigration Advisory Notice from US Customs and Border Protection” with regards to new US immigration entry requirements affecting the nationals of the seven countries.
Affected passengers are being urged to contact their booking agent to amend travel arrangements and for more information on the rules, they can visit the US Customs and Border Protection site.
One media report stated the six passengers who were bound for John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York on Saturday were prevented from boarding EgyptAir Flight 985 at Cairo airport, despite holding valid immigration visas.
It also said that the five Iraqis had arrived in transit from Erbil and were being held at the airport until they could be re-boarded on flights back to Iraq, whereas the Yemeni passenger had arrived at the airport from elsewhere in Cairo.
Dutch airline KLM said it had refused carriage to the United States to seven passengers from predominately Muslim countries subject to a temporary immigration ban imposed by the Trump administration.
On Friday, Trump put a fourmonth The world voiced concern over the Trump decision. France, Germany and Luxembourg voiced disquiet, while the United Nations and NGOs called for a rethink.