U.S. President Donald Trump has continued to defend his executive order banning entry to refugees and people from seven Muslim-majority countries, while rights groups vowed to keep pressing legal action, thousands of people protested in cities across the country and Democrats prepared to issue legislation to block the ban.
In a series of tweets Monday morning, Trump said Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly told him that "all is going well with very few problems." He added that "big problems at airports" were caused by a computer outage that hit Delta airlines, protesters and "the tears of" Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer.
Only 109 people out of 325,000 were detained and held for questioning. Big problems at airports were caused by Delta computer outage,.....
protesters and the tears of Senator Schumer. Secretary Kelly said that all is going well with very few problems. MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN!
There is nothing nice about searching for terrorists before they can enter our country. This was a big part of my campaign. Study the world!
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Schumer appeared to be holding back tears as he called Sunday for Trump to overturn the executive order.
The order, signed Friday, includes a 120-day suspension of refugee admissions and a 90-day entry ban for people from Iraq, Iran, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, Libya and Yemen.
The implementation led to confusion, particularly at the nation's airports, where in some cases people holding green cards as permanent legal residents were detained for extra questioning before being allowed entry.
Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly issued a statement Sunday seeking to clarify the policy, saying he deems "the entry of lawful permanent residents to be in the national interest."
In a separate statement, the Department of Homeland Security said the government retains its right to revoke visas at any time if necessary for national security. That followed an emergency order by federal court in New York temporarily barring the deportation of people who arrive at U.S. airports with a valid visa or an approved refugee application.
Judge Ann Donnelly wrote, "There is imminent danger that, absent the stay of removal, there will be substantial and irreparable injury to refugees, visa-holders, and other individuals from nations" who are subject to the president's order.
Trump has repeatedly called for stricter screening of refugees, and the senior administration official who briefed reporters Sunday described the previous system as "woefully inadequate."
Under President Barack Obama's administration, refugees were required to undergo security checks, including strict vetting by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, and extensive interviews before they were allowed into the country. For many refugees, the process took up to two years to complete.
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Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told VOA's Urdu service Trump's order goes against the values of Americans who have historically welcomed those fleeing persecution and war.
"Donald Trump did not convince any of us that he has sound legal or national security concerns. For example, the Syrian refugees are subjected to at least two years of scrutiny and extreme vetting already, and once they come here they are safe, they are vetted. There is no terrorist attack that happened at the hands of a Syrian refugee, or any refugee, that we know," Awad said. "So for him to base all his executive order on [that] false notion is un-American, unethical."
The 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation said Monday that Trump's action will further complicate the challenges refugees face.
"Such selective and discriminatory acts will only serve to embolden the radical narratives of extremists and will provide further fuel to the advocates of violence and terrorism at a critical time when the OIC has been engaged with all partners, including the U.S., to combat extremism and terrorism in all their forms and manifestations," said an OIC statement.
All seven countries featured in the executive order are OIC members.
The text of the order cites the September 11, 2001 terror attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people in the U.S., but does not apply to Saudi Arabia, where most of the hijackers involved were from.
Iran, Syria and Sudan are on the State Department's list of state sponsors of terrorism, while Iraq, Libya, Yemen and Somalia are listed as terrorist safe havens.