Donald Trump has announced a sweeping new travel ban affecting 19 countries, citing national security concerns and lax immigration controls. The proclamation, signed Wednesday evening, imposes full or partial entry restrictions on nationals from these countries, with 12 facing a complete ban.

The countries fully banned include Afghanistan, Myanmar (Burma), Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.

Seven additional countries face partial restrictions: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

According to the White House, exemptions will apply for lawful permanent residents, existing visa holders, individuals with certain visa types, and cases considered vital to U.S. national interests.

The announcement came days after a terror attack in Boulder, Colorado. Although the suspect in that incident was Egyptian — a country not included in the ban — the White House said the attack prompted Trump to finalize the long-considered measure.

“President Trump is fulfilling his promise to protect Americans from dangerous foreign actors,” stated Deputy Press Secretary Abigail Jackson. “These commonsense restrictions target countries that have high visa overstay rates, weak identity verification systems, or refuse to share threat intelligence with the U.S.”

This new directive revives memories of Trump’s controversial 2017 travel ban, which targeted several Muslim-majority countries and triggered legal battles, airport chaos, and global backlash. That order was eventually revised and upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018.