Trump's Travel Ban Draws Anger, Resignation

Citizens and governments of the nations named in President Trump's travel ban announcement responded on Thursday with anger, hurt, and a bit of sarcasm. "Chad has no planes to offer, no billions of dollars to give but Chad has its dignity and pride," President Idriss Deby wrote on Facebook. His government immediately enacted a reciprocal restriction on visas for Americans, NBC News reports. Other reactions included:

• Somalia: After already having US aid cut, including assistance for training forces to fight terrorist groups, the government decided against lashing out. "Somalia values its longstanding relationship with the United States and stands ready to engage in dialogue to address the concerns raised," its ambassador to the US said in a statement.

• Venezuela: The nation's interior minister called the US government "fascist" after the Trump administration canceled a special visa program. "They persecute our countrymen, our people for no reason," Diosdado Cabello said. In a show on state television, Cabello added, "The truth is being in the United States is a big risk for anybody, not just for Venezuelans."
• Haiti: The administration said the ban includes Haiti citizens for national security reasons because of its gang crisis, per the Washington Post, though analysts say there's not much reason to think gang members are coming to America. "The idea that Haitian gangs could be traveling to the US by legal means is completely out of the realm of the possible," said Renata Segura of the International Crisis Group.

• Afghanistan: Trump's ban exempts Afghans given Special Immigrant Visas for supporting the US military, often by serving as interpreters. But people who left when the Taliban took power, after being promised they'd be brought to the US, are unsure of what's next for them, per the Post. "This just puts Afghans from a bad to a worse situation," said a 35-year-old man waiting in Pakistan after applying for resettlement to the US in 2021. The head of #AfghanEvac, a 250-organization coalition that supports those who worked with the US, said people seeking lawful immigration status would be hurt most. "To include Afghanistan—a nation whose people stood alongside American service members for 20 years—is a moral disgrace," said Shawn VanDiver. "It spits in the face of our allies, our veterans, and every value we claim to uphold." A Taliban guard outside the former US Embassy in Kabul said he was disappointed by the ban, per the AP. "America has to cancel it," Ilias Kakal said.