U.S. bans most carry-on electronic devices on flights from 8 nations in Middle East, North Africa

Early Tuesday, the Trump administration announced that passengers on direct flights from 10 airports in eight majority-Muslim countries in the Middle East and North Africa will not be allowed to bring electronic devices larger than a cellphone into the airplane cabin with them. The new rule is effective immediately, and any of the foreign airlines that fail to comply in 96 hours may be barred from flying to the U.S. Trump administration officials said the ban was not linked to any specific or credible terrorist threat and was meant to fill gaps in airport security in the eight countries — Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (Dubai and Abu Dhabi), Kuwait, and Morocco.

The Trump administration said foreign officials were informed of the ban starting Sunday, but it still caused confusion in the targeted nations Tuesday morning. Officials at Cairo's international airport said they have received no instructions from the U.S., and Royal Jordanian airlines says it has not yet started to ban laptops, tablets, and other electronics from the cabin.

Aviation security expert Jeffrey Price pointed out some downsides to the indefinite ban. "There would be a huge disadvantage to having everyone put their electronics in checked baggage," he told The Associated Press, including batteries exploding in the hull and a sharp increase in thefts from baggage, as happened when Britain tried a similar ban in 2006.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up