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US Supreme Court Allows Parts Of Trump’s Travel Ban To Go Into Effect

The court ruled that it would allow the ban to go into effect for foreigners from six Muslim-majority countries who have no connections or relationships with any persons or entities in the US.

The United States Supreme Court on Monday agreed to enforce parts of President Donald Trump’s travel ban and will hear arguments on the legality of the ban during the court’s next term, which begins in October.

The court ruled that it would allow the ban to go into effect for foreigners from six Muslim-majority countries who have no connections or relationships with any persons or entities in the US.

Mr. Trump signed a revised executive order on March 6 temporarily limiting travelers and refugees from six Muslim-majority countries  - Iran, Libya, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, and Yemen - from entering the US for 90 days and suspended the refugee program for 120 days.

Two federal appeals courts then blocked the order. A San Francisco, California court ruled that Mr. Trump’s executive order exceeded the authority granted to the president by Congress, while a Richmond, Virginia court ruled last month that the travel ban violated the First Amendment of the US Constitution’s ban on government establishment of religion by targeting Muslims.

The Supreme Court, however, ruled on Monday that it would allow the ban to go into effect for travelers without any “bona fide relationship with any person or entity in the United States.”

The court explained that foreign nationals who are employed by companies in the US or attend US universities, for example, would be permitted to enter the country.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr., and Neil M. Gorsuch dissented from the court’s opinion, arguing that the travel ban should be fully enforced rather than applying only to those with no relationships to the US.

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