'Racist, hostile and against global law': Iran slams Trump's travel ban

Tehran calls Trump's renewed travel ban discriminatory, racist, and illegal under global law, accusing the US of targeting Muslims and deepening hostility

Iran has lashed out at the United States (US) over a sweeping travel ban that targets Iranian nationals and citizens from 11 other countries, mostly Middle Eastern and African. The move, Tehran says, is rooted in a "supremacist and racist mentality" and reflects Washington’s enduring animosity toward Muslims, reported The Guardian.

 

The criticism follows a fresh executive order signed on Wednesday by US President Donald Trump, reviving controversial travel restrictions that echo his first-term policy. The decision, according to US officials, was based on national security concerns—coming just days after a firebomb attack at a pro-Israel rally in Colorado that left over a dozen injured. The suspect was later identified as an Egyptian man who had overstayed his US tourist visa.

 

But Iran isn’t buying the justification.

 

Alireza Hashemi-Raja, director General for the Affairs of Iranians Abroad at Iran’s Foreign Ministry, issued a statement on Saturday, calling the measure “a clear sign of the dominance of a supremacist and racist mentality among American policymakers.”

 

Describing the order as “discriminatory,” Hashemi-Raja said the travel restrictions undermine basic human rights and violate fundamental principles of international law.

 

“The decision indicates the deep hostility of American decision makers towards the Iranian and Muslim people,” he said, warning that such policies could trigger international legal consequences for the US government. 

 

 

The new restrictions, which will come into effect on June 9, also apply to nationals of Iran, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. A partial ban has also been placed on travellers from seven additional countries, although their names have not been publicly disclosed.

 

Relations between Iran and the US have remained frosty for decades, especially since diplomatic ties were severed following the 1979 Islamic Revolution. While political tensions have persisted, the human connection remains significant—the US is home to the largest Iranian community outside of Iran. According to Iran’s foreign ministry, around 1.5 million Iranians lived in the US as of 2020. 

Iranian officials have repeatedly criticised what they describe as “unilateral and politically motivated policies” by Washington. Saturday’s response is just the latest in a series of fiery rebukes from Tehran over US decisions that, according to Iranian leaders, target individuals based purely on their religion or nationality.