No drama, chaos as travel ban hits

Lawyers and rights activists took up positions at major US airports as a weakened version of President Donald Trump’s travel ban took effect on Friday.

But there were no signs of the chaos that erupted when the first version of the restriction, derided as discriminatory against Muslims, was imposed in January.

Attorneys working pro-bono set up makeshift, just-in-case legal aid stations — some with signs in Arabic — at airports in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington and other cities.

Protesters angry over Mr Trump’s immigration policies also turned out, with some in Los Angeles holding black-and-white placards denouncing Mr Trump as a fascist.

But the first hours of the new version of the ban, as allowed by the Supreme Court, appeared to unfold calmly. The new rules aren’t so much an outright ban as a tightening of already-tough visa policies affecting citizens from six Muslim-majority countries. 

Under the temporary rules, citizens of Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Iran and Yemen who already have visas will be allowed into the US. But those who want new visas will have to prove a close family relationship or an existing relationship with an entity like a school or business in the US.