President Trump signed an executive order on Friday (Jan. 27) that bars refugees in seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering United States borders, The New York Times reports.
The order also established a religion-based test for refugees. Those immigrants of Christian faith or other minority religions will be given priority over others. The seven countries banned are Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen, which raise concerns about terrorism from Trump’s administration.
President Trump claims that this order will keep out “Radical Islamic terrorists out of America,” he announced at a Pentagon ceremony yesterday. “We don’t want them here,” he added.
The President also said that his new executive order was put in place “to ensure that we are not admitting into our country the very threats our soldiers are fighting overseas. We only want to admit those into our country who will support our country, and love deeply our people.”
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In retaliation to Trump’s order, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani announced earlier today (Jan. 28) that it would ban U.S. citizens from entering the country, according to a report from Reuters.
“While respecting the American people and distinguishing between them and the hostile policies of the U.S. government, Iran will implement the principle of reciprocity until the offensive U.S. limitations against Iranian nationals are lifted,” a Foreign Ministry statement said.
“The restrictions against travel by Muslims to America… are an open affront against the Muslim world and the Iranian nation in particular and will be known as a great gift to extremists,” said the statement, carried by state media.
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