A Syrian refugee who came to Winnipeg a year ago said U.S. President Donald Trump's ban on refugees makes no sense.
On Friday, Trump signed an executive order imposing a 120-day suspension on the entire U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, a move aiming to keep “radical Islamic terrorists” out of the country.
"I believe that it's very sad, because the refugees are escaping from terrorists, actually. They are escaping from terrorists, from ISIS, from the government, from any other side. So, to ban them because you think they are bad, it’s like killing them twice," said Mohamad al-Hamoud.
The order also imposes a 90-day ban on all entry to the U.S. from Muslim-majority countries such as Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen and an indefinite ban on refugees from Syria.
"We want to ensure that we are not admitting into our country the very threats our soldiers are fighting overseas," Trump told a crowd gathered at the Pentagon. "We only want to admit those into our country who will support our country and love deeply our people."
Trump's executive order is not expected to affect Canadians with dual citizenship.
READ MORE: U.S. official says entry ban applies to Canadian dual citizens from 7 countries
Officials at the Cairo airport said seven U.S.-bound migrants -- six from Iraq and one from Yemen -- have been stopped from boarding a flight to New York.
The executive order cites the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, but Saudi Arabia -- the country where 15 of the hijackers were from -- is not on the list.
Al-Hamoud believes the international community needs to step up if the U.S. will not. He is grateful for what Canada has done so far, but says if Canada can do more to help Syrian refugees, it should.
Canadian refugee advocates agree. “Canada needs to take the opposite route to show that we’re opposed to discrimination (and) that we are welcoming towards refugees,” Janet Dench, executive director of the Canadian Council for Refugees, told CTV News.
Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman responded to the refugee ban with a tweet: "Refugees = humans. Winnipeg will continue to provide sanctuary to those seeking refuge from conflict around the world."
Refugees = humans. Winnipeg will continue to provide sanctuary to those seeking refuge from conflict around the world. #RefugeesWelcome
— Mayor Brian Bowman (@Mayor_Bowman) January 28, 2017
Since November 2015, Canada has taken in nearly 40,000 Syrian refugees -- more than double the 16,000 refugees accepted into the U.S. during the same time.
The Trudeau government has received assurances that Canadian passport holders will not be caught up in an American travel ban that has barred citizens of seven countries from entering the United States.
An email from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office late Saturday said the U.S. has given assurances that Canadians with dual citizenship will not be turned away at the border.
"We have been assured that Canadian citizens travelling on Canadian passports will be dealt with in the usual process," said the email from Kate Purchase, Trudeau's director of communications.
With files from CTVNews.ca, The Canadian Press and The Associated Press