The US Department of Homeland Security is said to be looking into expanding a ban that prevents laptops and other electronics from the passenger cabin in certain airlines. If put into place, the ban could be extended to all flights originating from Europe.
Unnamed officials informed online magazine The Daily Beast about the potential ban. Although, no statement has been made by the DHS itself. A spokesman for the department took to Twitter to say that there has been no decision on a new ban as of yet; still the matter is being considered.
No final decisions made on expanding the restriction on large electronic devices in aircraft cabins; however, it is under consideration 1/2
— ARCHIVED DHS Spokesperson (@SpoxDHS) May 10, 2017
The current ban covers 10 countries from Europe and the Middle East, preventing anything larger than a smartphone from being carried into the passenger cabin. This was supposedly done as a security precaution.
Documents recovered from a raid on an Al-Qaeda showed that the group have managed to convert laptop batteries into explosive devices in order to attack airlines. There has not been any proof that this was directly linked to any attack.
Critics of the electronics ban have referred to it as an indirect ban on Muslim travellers, seeing that it only affects airlines coming from Muslim majority countries. However, expanding this to cover all European travellers is likely to dismiss that accusation. Even if it does make entering the US through Europe far more troublesome.
[Source: The Daily Beast]
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