Weeks after the US courts halt the previous immigration ban, President Donald Trump signs anew on Monday blocking immigrants from six Muslim-majority countries from entering to the United States. However, the new travel ban excludes Iraq from the order imposed last January.
The new one includes people coming from Yemen, Iran, Syria, Libya, Sudan and Somalia. According to a report by CNN, the US senior administration officials held that citizens from the affected countries who were US green card holders are excluded from the travel ban. Travelers who are also in possession of pre-existing visas will still be permitted to enter the country.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions said: "We cannot compromise our nation's security by allowing visitors entry when their own governments are unable or unwilling to provide the information we need to vet them responsibly, or when those governments actively support terrorism."
The issuance of the new version of the US President's executive order has been delayed for more than three weeks so as not to disrupt the joint address of Trump with the US Congress. There were also discussions between Iraq's Prime Minister and other government officials of the country, together with Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson for the exclusion of Iraq in the list of the countries to be banned from the United States, The New York Times reports.
Tillerson confirmed that the reason behind Iraq's exclusion from the latest immigration ban is the intention of improving the vetting of the Iraqi nationals. "The United States welcomes this kind of close cooperation. This revised order will bolster the security of the United States and our allies," he furthered.
On the other hand, the Foreign Ministry Iraq has also issued a statement in connection with the removal of the said country among Trump's travel ban's list of banned countries. Ahmad Jamal, Spokesperson of the Iraqi Foreign Ministry said that the ministry is in deep relief after Iraq has been excluded from the countries which are barred from entering the United States.
"This is considered an important step in the right direction that strengthen and reinforces the strategic alliance between Baghdad and Washington in many fields, in particular the fight against terrorism," he said.
