Trump expected to sign new travel ban order

WASHINGTON — United States President Donald Trump is preparing to sign a revised executive order temporarily barring the entry of people from certain Muslim-majority countries and halting the nation’s refugee programme.

A White House official says plans to roll out the order are on track for Monday (March 6). The official insisted on anonymity in order to discuss the order ahead of the official announcement.

The new order has been in the works since shortly after a federal court blocked Mr Trump’s initial effort, but the administration has repeatedly pushed back the signing.

Administration officials have said the new order aims to overcome the legal challenges to the first. Its goal will be the same: keep would-be terrorists out of the US while the government reviews the vetting system for refugees and visa applicants from certain parts of the world.

Mr Trump’s original orders temporarily blocked citizens of Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Syria and Libya from coming to America and put on hold the country’s refugee programme.

The revised order is expected to remove Iraq from the list of countries whose citizens face a temporary US travel ban, following pressure from the Pentagon and State Department, which had urged the White House to reconsider, given Iraq’ key role in fighting the Islamic State group.

The new order is also expected to make other changes, including no longer singling out Syrian refugees for an indefinite ban and making clear that all existing visas will be honoured.

Mr Trump signed his original executive order in late January, sparking confusion and anger as travelers were detained at US airports and barred from boarding flights at foreign airports.

The signing is expected to spark a new round of lawsuits and outrage. AP