Trump's New Travel Ban May Block Afghanistan and Pakistan Next Week
President Donald Trump’s latest travel ban, slated for as early as next week, could slam the door on Afghanistan and Pakistan, three anonymous sources told Reuters on March 6, 2025.
Stemming from a security vetting review due March 12, the move echoes Trump’s first-term Muslim-majority ban upheld in 2018 and threatens thousands of Afghans cleared for US resettlement. The Trump Travel Ban signals a hardline immigration pivot in his second term.
Triggered by a January 20 executive order, the Trump Travel Ban tasks cabinet leaders—State, Justice, Homeland Security, and National Intelligence with flagging countries with “deficient” vetting. Afghanistan’s set for a full ban, sources say, with Pakistan also in the crosshairs; other nations may join the list.
A new travel ban by US President Donald Trump could bar people from Afghanistan and Pakistan from entering the US as soon as next week based on a government review of countries' security and vetting risks, three sources familiar with the matter said https://t.co/sOtcVGEaNA pic.twitter.com/EwyAGFHdV3
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 6, 2025
Trump Travel Ban jeopardizes 200,000 Afghans who have been approved for refugee status or Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs), and have been stranded since Trump’s 90-day refugee freeze. Many, vetted for aiding the US during Afghanistan’s 20-year war, face Taliban reprisals if blocked.
One source highlighted the irony: SIV holders undergo the world’s toughest screening, yet the State Department’s plea for their exemption looks shaky. With 20,000 stuck in Pakistan alone, Shawn VanDiver of #AfghanEvac urged visa holders to “travel ASAP” before the ban drops.
Trump Threatens Gaza Destruction, Confirms US Talks with Hamas
The Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts, already facing April closure, scrambles as Trump’s order halts aid funding flights. Pakistan’s militant struggles and Afghanistan’s Islamic State insurgency fuel the ban’s rationale.
The Trump Travel Ban revives a divisive saga. Biden axed it in 2021, but Trump is back with a vengeance.
