Yesterday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio revealed that the United States is immediately halting the issuance of visas to individuals holding South Sudanese passports and canceling any existing ones.
Rubio explained that the decision was made due to “the failure of South Sudan’s transitional government to accept the return of its repatriated citizens in a timely manner,” as he wrote in a post on X.
In a formal statement issued the same day, the U.S. State Department criticized South Sudan’s interim leadership, asserting it was time for the government to “stop taking advantage” of American support and leniency.
“Enforcing our nation’s immigration laws is critically important to the national security and public safety of the United States,” the statement read. “Every country must accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner when another country, including the United States, seeks to remove them.”
Officials added that the restrictions could be reassessed if South Sudan shows full cooperation going forward. The department noted it “will be prepared to review these actions when South Sudan is in full cooperation.”
The timing of this announcement coincides with escalating turmoil in South Sudan. The country is teetering on the edge of another civil war, with rising violence, widespread displacement, and deepening hunger.
This policy shift also follows the closure of the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum, Sudan, last April. As of April 22, 2023, all consular services there, including visas and passports, have been suspended.
The announcement follows other significant immigration policy changes. In February, the Trump administration ended protections that had shielded hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans from deportation.
Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security announced plans to revoke temporary protected status for over 300,000 individuals from various nations who had been permitted to stay in the U.S. under that classification.
According to reporting by the New York Post, more than 100,000 undocumented immigrants have been deported by the Trump administration since it assumed office, citing information from a DHS official.
{Matzav.com}