WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday that would let the U.S. designate nations as state sponsors of wrongful detention, using the threat of associated sanctions to deter Americans from being detained abroad or taken hostage.

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President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday that would let the U.S. designate nations as state sponsors of wrongful detention, using the threat of associated sanctions to deter Americans from being detained abroad or taken hostage

The designation, similar to the state sponsors of terrorism designation that the U.S. already imposes on some nations, will allow the State Department to target countries falling under the label with penalties such as economic restrictions, restrictions on visas for th

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