US Imposes Visa Limits on Nations Refusing to Take Back Deportees

The Department of Homeland Security reports that the US has imposed visa restrictions on countries refusing to accept deportees.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US has slapped visa sanctions on Cambodia, Eritrea, Guinea and Sierra Leone for refusing to accept citizens deported by the United States, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced in a press release on Wednesday.

"Without an appropriate response from the impacted countries, the scope of these sanctions may be expanded to a wider population," the release said. "The suspension will remain in place on each of these respective countries until the Secretary of Homeland Security notifies Secretary [of State Rex] Tillerson that cooperation on removals has improved to an acceptable level."

Initially, the sanctions will be applied to "certain categories" of visa applicants, determined on a country-by-country basis, the release explained.

Because the four countries have thus far refused to issue passports or other travel documents to US deportees, thousands of dangerous criminals have been released into communities throughout the United States when completing prison sentences, the release noted.

At present, 2,137 Guinean, 831 Sierra Leone, 700 Eritrean and 1,900 Cambodian nationals are subject to final deportation orders, some with serious criminal convictions, including violent offenses, according to the release.