Germany, which admitted over a million Syrian refugees in 2015, and expects another 300,000 this year, serves as an example of Muslim refugee populations in the West.
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The initiative took off slowly: By the end of January – one-third of the way through FY 2016 – only 841 Syrian refugees had been admitted.
“The Republican nominee for president, Donald Trump, wants to ban anyone coming from an area with terrorism ties and a majority of governors, all but one a Republican, insist Syrian refugees are not welcome because some could pose a security threat”.
The Obama administration’s objective was to reach the refugee goal by the beginning of the next fiscal year, which begins on October 1.
The Syrian refugees are chosen from United Nations camps and then vetted by USA security and intelligence agencies. The United States has committed to work with the worldwide community to significantly increase humanitarian assistance funding, double the global number of refugees afforded opportunities for resettlement or other humanitarian admissions, and help empower refugees in countries of asylum.
Refugees are the most thoroughly screened category of travelers to the United States, and Syrian refugees are subject to even greater scrutiny.
Obama’s resettlement benchmark is a six-fold increase from the prior year, according to National Security Advisor Susan Rice.
“I think we’re very excited to be part of this resettlement process of Syrians who are so desperate to find safety and a place to rebuild their lives after everything they’ve experienced”, she says.
This admission of refugees into the United States follows already substantial us aid of $5.6 billion so far to Syria and neighbors.
In December, Trump proposed a plan to temporarily ban all Muslims from entering the USA, and most recently revised that plan to a temporary ban on “certain people” coming from countries with “tremendous terrorism”.
The Obama administration is aiming to increase its target goal for 2017, according to Al Jazeera.
The United States accepted fewer than 1,700 Syrian refugees in fiscal year.
The Jouriyeh family, which attended Sunday’s short ceremony, is headed to San Diego, California.
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Since the Syrian civil war began in 2011, more than 4.8 million fled their homeland, to neighbouring Middle Eastern countries like Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and many more to the shores of Europe in search of safety and security.
