The news of Kuwaiti visa ban on these five nations surfaced after a day the US decided its own restrictions on seven Muslim-majority countries – Syria, Somalia, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Yemen and Sudan. Kuwait first ordered “a blanket ban” on new visas for Syrians in 2011, but those Syrians who were already in the country were allowed to remain. This had made Kuwait “the only country in the world to officially bar entry to Syrians” – until the US named Syria in the list of banned countries. Middle East news portals have reported that Kuwaiti government has ordered a total visa and travel ban on citizens from the five Muslim-majority countries which are considered to be 'unstable', writes International Business Times . Kuwait will allegedly lift the travel embargo once “the security situation improves.” Pakistan and Afghanistan have all witnessed series of violent attacks from extremist groups, while Syria and Iraq are still entangled in internal conflicts. “Tensions between Iran and the Gulf have ratcheted up over the past year with the GCC powers accusing Tehran of attempting to destabalise the region,” reports Al Bawaba News . Kuwait is taking these steps because of its alleged concern over the threat of extremist groups such as Al-Qaeda and Islamic State (IS) “with both militant organisations having a presence in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.” The Gulf state has had to face several militant attacks over the past two years, including the bombing of a Shia mosque in 2015 that left 27 Kuwaits dead. In response, Kuwait arrested dozens of suspected IS sympathisers and started a mandatory DNA testing programme and database for its 4-million-population.