The US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has announced that the US plans to broaden its contentious travel ban, with plans to extend restrictions to more than 30 nations. The US president Donald Trump is restricting immigrants. Noem was questioned on Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle on whether President Donald Trump’s administration would expand the list of countries prohibited from the US to 32. What did the US Homeland Security say? Noem confirmed that President Donald Trump was assessing the list of over 30 countries across the globe. “I will not give a precise figure, but it is more than 30, and the president is still evaluating nations,” she said. She did not specify which other nations would be impacted by the increased restrictions.
“Why should we allow people from that country to come here to the US if they do not have a stable government there, if they do not have a country that can sustain itself and tell us who those individuals are and help us vet them?” she posed. Why is the US banning foreign nationals from certain countries? The current ban, which was implemented through a proclamation signed by Trump in June 2025, restricts entry into the US for citizens of seven nations and forbids entry for citizens of 12 countries. The administration defended the move as being required to protect against alleged foreign terrorists and other security risks. Both immigrants and non-immigrants, including tourists, students, and business travellers, are subject to the general limitations. President Trump vowed to protect Americans.
International political economist Leshan Naisho told TUKO.co.ke that the US is also using the self-deportation programme to limit immigrants. However, he noted that previous such attempts did not yield fruit. “Current figures from DHS indicate 1.6 million have voluntarily self-deported, but this figure is an aggregate and combines multiple mechanisms and is questionable. Independent reporting shows some 35,000 people have used this programme, which brings up the question of how effective this program has been and will be,” he explained. According to the Independent, the Trump administration was reportedly considering prohibiting nationals of 36 more nations from entering the US as per an official State Department cable. Since two National Guard men were shot in Washington, DC, last week, the administration has escalated its immigration policies, and an increase in the list would be another step in that direction. An Afghan native who entered the country in 2021 through a resettlement programme, under which Trump administration officials have claimed there was poor vetting, was the shooter, according to investigators.
By Japhet Ruto
