US to ban electronics on routes from Muslim-majority countries
On the 21st of March, an announcement came about a new US ban on large electronic devices, such as laptops, tablets, cameras, DVD players and electronic games, from cabin baggage on routes from eight Middle Eastern and North African countries.
The ban will include all large electronic devices except phones, affecting nine airlines operating from 10 airports, according to BBC. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said extremists were looking for “innovative methods” to bring down jets and hiding bombs in electronic devices is one of the ways to do so.
The 10 airports to which the restrictions will be applied are located in eight countries – Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar and Emirates, as Associated Press (AP) commented to BBC. The AP also named the nine affected airlines – Royal Jordanian, Egypt Air, Turkish Airlines, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Kuwait Airways, Royal Air Maroc, Qatar Airways, Emirates and Etihad Airways.
The carriers had been given four days, beginning at 07:00 GMT on Tuesday, to ban devices bigger than a mobile phone or smartphone from cabins, as reported by US officials.
This weekend, the DHS’ secretary John Kelly reportedly called congressional lawmakers to discuss the travel security issues that evoked the electronics ban, congressional aides told the AP news agency. The officials have been considering the matter for several weeks, as reported by US media.
