美国国会众议院以压倒多数批准了一项法案，禁止在过去5年去过叙利亚、伊拉克以及任何“关注国家和地区”的人免签证入境美国。
这一法案是跨党派努力的一部分，对入境美国的免签证计划进行修正。现行的该计划规定，世界上38个国家的公民如果在美停留90天或更短时间，就不必事先从使领馆取得签证。
这项法案星期二晚间以407票对19票获得通过。法案一旦生效，将带来一系列变化，包括要求有关国家根据国际刑警组织的数据库对申请来美的人进行核查，以确定他们是否被执法部门列入恐怖分子或犯罪分子通缉名单。
为了防止护照造假，这项法案还将要求所有38个国家发放所谓的“电子护照”，上面存有生物数据信息。这项法案将要求相关国家证实，通过扫描可以确认电子护照的合法性。
每年有大约2千万人通过免签证计划访美。他们目前是经过国土安全局维护的一个网络系统进行过滤核查。
这项法案还要得到参议院和奥巴马总统的批准，方能生效。
US Congress Moves to Tighten Controls on Visa-Free Travel
The U.S. House of Representatives has overwhelmingly approved a bill that would bar people who have visited Syria, Iraq or any "country or area of concern" in the past five years from a program that allows visa-free entry to the United States.
The legislation is part of a bipartisan push to amend the Visa Waiver Program that currently allows citizens of 38 countries to travel to the U.S. for stays of 90 days and less without first obtaining a visa from an embassy or consulate.
The bill, which passed 407-19 late Tuesday, would institute a series of changes, including requiring participating countries to check travelers against Interpol databases to determine whether they are wanted by law enforcement agencies based on ties to terrorism or criminal activity.
To prevent falsification of passports, the measure would require all 38 countries to issue what it calls “e-passports” containing biometric information. The bill would require countries to be able to confirm that such documents are legitimate when they are scanned.
Some 20 million visitors come to the U.S. annually under the visa waiver program. They already are screened through an online system maintained by the Department of Homeland Security.
To take effect, the changes must be approved by the Senate and President Barack Obama.
数以百计叙利亚人离开霍姆斯反政府武装控制下的最后地区
星期三，数百人离开叙利亚中部城市霍姆斯反叛武装控制的最后地区，这是与政府达成的一项地方和平协议的一部分。
内战期间，该地区多年来一直被叙利亚军队包围，那里是最早爆发冲突的地区之一，被零星反政府武装所占据。
除反政府武装人员外，数以百计的平民也登上了离开瓦尔区的巴士。设在英国的监督叙利亚冲突的叙利亚人权瞭望台说，星期三预计会有750人离开那里。
反叛武装撤离后，叙利亚政府将全面控制霍姆斯。这里位于首都大马士革以北约150公里处一条高速公路旁，沿公路再往北，还有哈马市和阿勒颇市。
促成叙利亚全面和平协议的努力迄今为止收效甚微，但是有些地区达成了小范围的地方协议。联合国以及一些世界大国正在努力促使叙利亚政府和几个反政府组织在明年1月1日之前开始由联合国斡旋的谈判。
Hundreds of Syrians Leaving Last Rebel-Held Part of Homs
Hundreds of people are leaving the last rebel-held section of the central Syrian city of Homs on Wednesday as part of a local peace deal with the government.
Syrian forces besieged the area for several years during the country's civil war, as pockets of rebels remained in the area that was one of the early flashpoints in the conflict.
In addition to opposition fighters leaving the Wael district, hundreds of civilians are boarding buses out of the area. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the violence in Syria, said 750 people were expected to leave Wednesday.
Once the rebel fighters leave, the Syrian government will be in full control of Homs, which is located about 150 kilometers north of the capital, Damascus, along a highway that also connects the cities of Hama and Aleppo further to the north.
Efforts to bring a comprehensive peace agreement to Syria have so far yielded little progress, while smaller, local deals have been struck in several parts of the country. The United Nations and a group of world powers are currently working to get the Syrian government and various opposition groups to begin U.N.-mediated talks by January 1.