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By Hannah Parry
Associate News Editor
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President Donald Trump has revealed why Egypt—where Boulder, Colorado, attack suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman was born—was not included in the travel ban.
"Egypt has been a country that we deal with very closely," he told reporters at the White House on Thursday. "They have things under control."
Why It Matters
At least 15 people were injured on Sunday during the attack at a protest in support of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas. Police said Soliman, 45, had come armed with 18 Molotov cocktails and threw two into the crowd while yelling, "Free Palestine."
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Soliman, who was on an expired visa from Egypt, is facing attempted murder and federal hate crime charges.
The Trump administration attempted to deport Soliman's wife and five children after the attack, but the effort was blocked by a judge on Wednesday. A few hours later, Trump announced his travel ban.
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What To Know
Trump announced the ban on 12 countries on Wednesday, in the wake of the attack. However, critics were quick to point out that the suspect's home country of Egypt was not among them.
When asked about it on Thursday, during an Oval Office meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump said it was because Egypt had things "under control" while "the countries that we have [under the travel ban], don't have things under control."
Trump was then asked why he had imposed the travel ban now, if it was not directly related to the Boulder attack suspect.
"It can't come soon enough," he responded. "We want to keep bad people out of our country."
Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma told CNN on Wednesday that the travel ban was being considered before the Boulder attack and that Trump only referenced it as "an example of why we need to do this."
Under the new ban, nationals from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen are barred from entering the U.S.
Other countries that now face heightened restrictions include Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
Trump also implemented a travel ban in his first term, targeting nationals from Muslim-majority countries. The so-called Muslim ban was revoked under President Joe Biden.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday: "The recent terror attack in Boulder, Colorado, has underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country, by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted, as well as those who come here as temporary visitors and overstay their visas. We don't want them."
Democratic Representative Don Beyer of Virginia posted to X on Wednesday: "From his first Muslim Ban, Trump's travel bans have always betrayed of the ideals and values that inspired America's Founders. Trump's use of prejudice and bigotry to bar people from entering the U.S. does not make us safer, it just divides us and weakens our global leadership."
Senator Markwayne Mullin told CNN: "I don't think the Boulder incident had anything to do with this moving forward because this conversation has been going on for weeks."
What Happens Next
The new travel restrictions are set to take effect on June 9.
Update 6/5/25, 1.38 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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