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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Criticism from world leaders builds against Trump’s immigration order

Bloomberg

Opposition from abroad to U.S. President Donald Trump intensified Sunday as world leaders condemned his order to temporarily limit immigration from what are predominantly Muslim countries, while Germany pledged to play a bigger role on the international stage.

World leaders including British Prime Minister Theresa May, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized Trump and said their nations won’t change their immigration policies.

“We do not agree with this kind of approach and it is not one we will be taking,” May said in a statement Sunday, two days after meeting Trump in Washington to begin work on a trade agreement.

Calling the order a “visible insult” to Muslims, Iran “will reciprocate with legal, consular and political undertakings,” the official Islamic Republic News Agency said.

Trump’s order was stymied on Saturday when two judges temporarily blocked his administration from enforcing a provision that would have led to the removal from U.S. airports of refugees, visa holders and legal U.S. residents from seven countries. Trump said the measure would prevent terrorists from being admitted into the country.

Trudeau said in Twitter post that Canada would welcome those fleeing “persecution, terror and war. Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith.” A similar message was sent by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who said refugees deserve a safe haven regardless of their background or religion.

Merkel expressed her concerns about the orderduring a phone call with Trump on Saturday, German government spokesman Steffen Seibert said in Twitter post. Merkel is convinced that the fight against terrorism doesn’t justify putting people from a specific place of origin or religion under general suspicion.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan, on Facebook, called the ban “shameful and cruel” and said the new policy “flies in the face of the values of freedom and tolerance that the USA was built upon.” Former Mexican President Vicente Fox said in a Twitter post that the executive order had “united the world” against Trump.