President Donald Trump has signed a sweeping executive proclamation suspending entry into the United States for nationals of 12 countries, most of them in Africa and the Middle East, citing national security concerns and insufficient vetting capabilities.

The proclamation, released Wednesday evening, bars citizens of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen from entering the U.S., effective Monday, June 9 at 12:01 a.m. ET.

The administration says the ban targets countries with inadequate information-sharing protocols, poor security vetting infrastructure, and histories of high visa overstay rates. It also flags regions with known terrorist activity or weak repatriation cooperation when U.S. authorities attempt to deport individuals.

The order also imposes partial restrictions on travelers from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela, limiting certain visa categories or travel purposes.

“On my first day back in office, I directed the Secretary of State to immediately conduct a top-to-bottom security review of high-risk regions,” Trump said in a White House video statement. “We will never compromise on the safety of the American people.”

He also cited Sunday’s violent attack on Jewish protesters in Boulder, Colorado. The alleged attacker, an Egyptian national, is not from a country included in the current ban.

The move echoes Trump’s controversial 2017 travel ban, which blocked entry from seven Muslim-majority countries early in his first term. That policy was eventually upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2018, despite widespread condemnation. President Biden rescinded it in 2021, calling it discriminatory.

Democrats and immigration advocates condemned the policy, calling it xenophobic and counterproductive.

“Make no mistake: Trump’s latest travel ban will NOT make America safer,” said Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) on X. “We cannot continue to allow the Trump administration to write bigotry and hatred into U.S. immigration policy.”

The proclamation also exempts U.S. green card holders, professional athletes attending major events, and immediate family members with “clear and convincing” documentation of their identity and family ties, including DNA evidence.

Critics note that Egypt — the country of origin of the Boulder suspect — is not on the list, raising concerns about the policy’s internal logic and political motivations.