President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order putting a four-month hold on refugees flow into the United States.
This temporarily bars visitors from Syrian and six other Muslim majority countries Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan Iraq and Yemen.
According to the White House, the new measure which will last for 90 days is expected to keep radical terrorists out of the United States of America.
But civil rights groups say the move is discriminatory and will paint the United States in bad light.
“I’m establishing new vetting measures to keep radical Islamic terrorists out of the United States of America. Don’t want them here,” Trump said earlier on Friday.
“We only want to admit those into our country who will support our country and love deeply our people,” he said.
Meanwhile, France and Germany are “concerned” over Trump’s move to restrict refugee arrivals.
French Foreign Minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault said following a meeting with his German counterpart Sigmar Gabriel, that “This decision can only cause us concern,” adding that “Welcoming refugees who are fleeing war is part of our duty.”
The United Nations refugee agency and International Organization for Migration (IOM) called on the Trump administration on Saturday to continue offering asylum to people fleeing war and persecution, saying its resettlement program was vital.
