U.S., U.K. begin enforcing electronics ban on flights from several Muslim-majority countries

The U.S. and U.K. ban on certain electronic devices in carry-on luggage on direct flights from several Muslim-majority countries came into effect Saturday, creating headaches for passengers.

The controversial ban requires devices bigger than a mobile phone — like tablets, laptops and cameras — be placed in checked baggage.

The U.S. restrictions cover 10 airports in eight countries — including Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. The British restrictions cover travellers from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Turkey and Tunisia.

READ MORE: Canada reviewing threats that prompted US, UK electronics travel ban

Passengers heading to the U.K. from Istanbul’s Ataturk airport complained about the ban.

“This airport is so secured. The security level is so high compared to other airports in the rest of this part of the world. So, why doing that from here?” Haggai Mazursky told Reuters.

The U.S. ban took effect Tuesday, with a Saturday-morning deadline for compliance. Britain announced similar restrictions on the heels of the U.S. announcement.

Officials in the U.S. and U.K. said the decision to implement the new security measures was a result of intelligence showing an increased risk for “terrorist activity” involving commercial aviation.

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Unnamed senior counterterrorism experts who spoke to the New York Times said the ban was spurred by intelligence showing the Islamic State was working to develop a bomb hidden in portable electronics.

Canada is also considering introducing restrictions on electronics in cabins of planes, but has yet to offer any further details on the matter.

“We are looking at the information that has been presented to us,” Transport Minister Marc Garneau said earlier this week. “There is not a specific timeline, but we are acting expeditiously.”

Many groups across the globe, including the American Civil Liberties Union, have criticized the measure as discriminatory.

“The administration hasn’t provided a security rationale that makes sense for this measure targeting travelers from Muslim-majority countries,” Hina Shamsi, director of the ACLU National Security Project, told CNN. “Given the administration’s already poor track record, this measure sends another signal of discriminatory targeting.”

Royal Jordanian, which operates direct flights to London, New York, Detroit and Chicago, poked fun at the ban with a number of social media posts suggesting alternative in-flight activities, including doing “what we Jordanians do best… stare at each other!”

— With files from the Associated Press