New US immigration rules have come into effect, barring certain people
from six mainly-Muslim countries and making refugee applications
harder.
Earlier this week the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration
to go ahead with part of its proposed travel ban. It now means people
without "close" family or business ties will be blocked from entering
the US.
Pro-immigration campaigners, Muslim rights groups, and even existing
refugees have reacted angrily to the new rules.
As Nick Harper reports from New York.
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TAKE VO
Issam Khoury fled Syria three years ago, and was granted asylum in the
United States.
He came with his wife and three children. But has found it difficult
to get work, despite having a permit that needs renewing yearly.
Khoury is critical of the low number of Syrian refugees the Obama
administration allowed to enter the US.
He feels the Trump administration should be letting people in, not
turning them away.
SOT - Issam Khoury, Syrian refugee
It's hard to see that people are dying every moment, not every day,
every moment you can see numbers. I think USA not should, they must
help refugees because USA its big power in the world.
TAKE VO
The President's initial immigration proposals in January sparked an
angry backlash.
Protesters gathered at US airports, like New York's JFK.
Yet Michael Wildes, an immigration lawyer of Wildes & Weinberg says
even before the new immigration rules, the refugee entry process could
take up to 18 months to complete.
SOT - Michael Wildes, Immigration Lawyer, Wildes & Weinberg
The vetting process of foreign nationals coming to the United States
either for temporary visas or permanent residents is monumental. And
when you're coming from hot bids particularly from Middle East, Syria
and other areas, the government spends an enormous amount of time and
resources trying to make sure that they don't make mistakes.
TAKE VO
President Trump and the White House have defended the ban, saying it's
needed to keep the country safe.
Here's White House deputy press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
SOT - Sarah Huckabee Sanders, White House deputy press secretary
"The president's been very clear he wants to go as far in a strong as
possible under the Constitution to protect the people in this country.
Everybody wants to make it something different than national security
issue and that's exactly what this is and that's why the president so
focused on pushing forward in the strongest form possible."
NATSOT - chanting
TAKE VO
But people who gathered in New York as the ban came into effect on
Thursday night disputed that idea.
VOXES
"This is not really a security issue. This is an issue based in
bigotry and fear-mongering under the line that this is really a
security issue."
"This is an outright Muslim ban. It is not a travel ban, it is not
because of national security interests."
TAKE VO
The immigration ban has become the biggest legal battle of Donald
Trump's presidency.
It's legality has been called into question and it has divided the nation.
Whatever the Supreme Court decides in the autumn, one side will feel
they've lost a very important fight over American freedoms.
SOC
ENDS
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