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Phone out of power? Sorry, no entry to US

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Watch out iPhone and Samsung Galaxy users.  ​If you're a passenger at an airport offering direct flights to the US, do charge your phones and other electronic devices before you leave for the airport.

The US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) warned on Sunday that powerless devices will not be permitted onboard the aircraft.

According to reports last week, US officials have singled out the Apple and Samsung phones as devices that need to be paid more attention.

Enhanced airport security checks

The new measure is the first to be confirmed since US Homeland Security secretary Jeh Johnson warned of enhanced security checks, especially at "overseas airports with direct flights into the United States", reported British newspaper The Guardian.

This move follows intelligence that Al-Qaeda operatives in Syria and Yemen may have developed bombs that could be placed in mobile telephones. The extremist bomb threat can potentially avoid detection, stoking fears it is potentially capable of bringing down America-bound aircraft.

It was not revealed which airports will face these checks.

Reports last week said passengers at British and Belgian airports travelling to the US faced these extra checks on their phones.

Sources: The Guardian, Reuters, Telegraph

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