US: Attorneys general of 16 states condemn refugee ban

NEW YORK

Attorneys General of 16 U.S. states Sunday fulminated against President Donald Trump’s executive action to deny entry to refugees from seven countries.

“As the chief legal officers for over 130 million Americans and foreign residents of our states, we condemn President Trump’s unconstitutional, un-American and unlawful Executive Order,” they said in a joint statement.

"We are committed to working to ensure that as few people as possible suffer from the chaotic situation that it has created," they added.

The statement was undersigned by general of 16 states -- most of which are Democratic -- including Washington, D.C, New York, Pennsylvania, California, Illinois, Washington, Massachusetts, Hawaii, Virginia, Oregon, Iowa, Connecticut, Vermont, Maryland, New Mexico, and Maine.

The executive action, which the president signed Friday, bring a 90-day ban on refugees from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.

Syrians are barred indefinitely, and the executive order reportedly stipulates a religious test that prioritizes Syrian Christians.

The White House has not released the full text of the action, despite releasing the others Trump signed last week.

A federal judge on Saturday blocked part of Trump’s executive order, allowing for the release of a dozen people who were detained at the John F Kennedy International Airport for arriving in the U.S. after the order went into effect Friday night.

More people were reportedly affected by the ban over the weekend at airports across the country.