As confusion reigned, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to Reuters that people with green cards, making them legal permanent US residents, were included in the ban.
“It will bar green card holders,” wrote Gillian Christensen, acting DHS spokeswoman, in an email.
Trump’s executive order, signed on Friday in Washington, temporarily banned refugees from around the world, blocked Syrian refugees indefinitely and halted entry for people from seven predominantly Muslim countries: Iraq, Syria, Iran, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia.
A state department spokesman confirmed to the Guardian that travellers who have dual nationality between a country on the list and another non-US country, for instance UK-Iraqi or Canadian-Somali citizenship,are barred from entering the US for 90 days. The order provides for giving priority to religious minorities in those Muslim countries; Trump has said the US will in future prioritise Christian refugees.
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The immediate consequences have been dire for everyone including valid visa holders and legal residents, and lawsuits have already begun – but the orders’ vagueness leaves much up in the air
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In New York, two Iraqi refugees were detained at JFK airport. One, Hameed Khalid Darweesh, had worked in Iraq for the US government for 10 years. The other, Haider Sameer Abdulkhaleq Alshawi, was coming to the US to join his wife who had worked for a US contractor.
Congressman Nadler told the Guardian that anyone who was detained at an airport should “not sign anything and ask for a lawyer”.
“Donald Trump should revoke the executive order,” he said. “It’s unconstitutional on the grounds of religious discrimination.”
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other groups filed a lawsuit challenging the detention of the two Iraqi men, and Darweesh was allowed to enter the US on Saturday afternoon. He spoke before around 100 protesters outside Terminal Four at JFK, who shouted: “No hate, No war, refugees are welcome here.”