Iraq to Be Removed From Trump’s New Muslim Ban List

The new incarnation of US President Donald Trump’s travel ban is expected to roll out in a matter of days. The Trump administration is promising a more streamlined version which will be far more difficult to challenge.

And Then There Were Six

Ahead of his Congressional address Tuesday night, Trump had hinted at the possibility that Iraq would be removed from the Trump 7. According to a report in the New Arab, this is now being confirmed by four US officials who agreed to confirm the detail under guarantee of anonymity. No one has been granted permission to discuss the new ban order before it’s made public.

The four are confirming that Trump has bowed to increased pressure from the Pentagon and the Sate Department. Each felt strongly Iraq should be removed from the list owing to its considerable contribution in the fight against ISIS.

Why The Original Ban Failed

According to Reuters, the issue with the original order which found itself blocked by a lower court, was that it could provide no concrete examples of it’s claims that immigrants from the seven banned, predominantly Muslim countries posed a direct threat to US security. In other words, they could not prove standing. On the other hand, challengers to the ban, such as the State of Washington, were able to successfully argue their case that the ban was having very real social and economic consequences for both individuals and businesses.

What’s in Store

Most legal experts agree that no matter what the language of the new order is, it will not deter challenges to it’s legality. The Trump administration has been talking about the possibility of excluding people who hold a legal visa or green card but this has not been confirmed. The initial order caused chaos at airports because people who were in possession of legal permits to live and work within the United States were being blocked from re-entering the country.

Source :Morocco World News