US Shuts Door To 12 Nations Under New Trump Travel Ban
On Wednesday evening, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a proclamation enforcing a travel ban on nationals from 12 countries, effectively restricting their entry into the United States. The decision marks a significant tightening of immigration controls and is expected to spark both domestic and international debate.
Nationals from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen will face complete entry bans into the United States under a new presidential proclamation.
According to the directive, individuals from these countries will be “fully” barred from entering the U.S., with no exceptions under standard visa categories.
In contrast, citizens of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela will face partial restrictions, which could include limitations on certain visa types or increased vetting procedures.
The proclamation takes effect at 12:01 a.m. EDT on June 9, 2025 (5:01 a.m. Nigerian time).
Former U.S. President Donald Trump, who announced the policy, justified the decision as a national security measure aimed at shielding the U.S. from “foreign terrorists and other security threats.”
“We will not allow people to enter our country who wish to do us harm,” Trump said in a video posted on X.
The U.S. President said the list could be revised and new countries could be added.
He said the countries subject to the most severe restrictions were determined to harbour a “large-scale presence of terrorists”.
He alleged others failed to cooperate on visa security and had an inability to verify travellers’ identities, inadequate record-keeping of criminal histories and high rates of visa overstays in the U.S..
“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,” Trump said.
Donald Trump’s latest immigration directive marks a renewed and intensified effort to tighten U.S. borders in the early phase of his second term. The former president, doubling down on his hardline stance, has ordered sweeping travel restrictions targeting nations he deems security risks — including Gaza, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen, and others “that threaten U.S. safety.”
The policy stems from an executive order signed on January 20, directing rigorous security screening of all foreign nationals seeking entry into the United States. The order also tasked several key cabinet officials with compiling a list of countries whose security vetting systems are deemed inadequate, recommending partial or total travel bans.
This strategy revives a familiar playbook from Trump’s first term, during which he introduced a highly controversial travel ban affecting citizens of seven majority-Muslim countries. That move sparked global outrage but was ultimately upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2018.
President Joe Biden later revoked that policy in 2021, denouncing it as “a stain on our national conscience.” Trump’s new action, however, signals a return to his trademark nationalist rhetoric and restrictive immigration policies — and sets the stage for renewed legal and political battles over America’s immigration future.
Africa Today News, New York
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