A new travel ban ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump will take effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on Monday, barring citizens from 12 countries from entering the United States. The administration said the measure is aimed at protecting national security and preventing "foreign terrorists" from entering the country.

The full ban applies to Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.

In addition, partial entry restrictions will be imposed on nationals from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

President Trump, a Republican, defended the decision, claiming the most heavily affected countries were those with a "large-scale presence of terrorists," inadequate identity verification processes, weak criminal background records, and high rates of visa overstays in the U.S.

Citing a recent incident in Boulder, Colorado — where an Egyptian national reportedly threw a gasoline bomb into a crowd of pro-Israel demonstrators — Trump said the incident underscores the urgency of the new travel restrictions. However, Egypt is not among the countries listed in the ban.

The move is reminiscent of Trump’s earlier travel ban during his first term, which targeted several Muslim-majority nations and sparked global backlash.

US ends special status for Nepal after ’15 quake

Kathmandu: The US has terminated the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) provided to Nepal in the wake of the 2015 earthquake, a media report said. A US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) notice on Saturday said TPS would not be extended for Nepal after its expiration on June 24 this year. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said the beneficiaries would be granted a 60-day transition period through August 5, The Himalayan Times reported.