“We are concerned that the rhetoric being used in the election campaign is putting an incredibly important resettlement programme at risk – a resettlement programme which is meant for the most vulnerable people of wars that the world is unable to stop”, said Melissa Fleming, spokesperson for the United Nations refugee agency.
Advertisement
On Monday, a hearing on Texas’ lawsuit over Syrian refugees resulted in an initial directive that the federal government provide Texas with advance notice of its intent to settle refugees within the state.
Other refugees resettled in Houston on Monday, and another nine people from Syria will arrive in Houston on Thursday.
Pence spokesman Matt Lloyd said Tuesday that the Republican governor is confident that IN residents will be welcoming to the couple and their two young children, who arrived Monday night.
“ISIS represents the face of evil”, Cruz told reporters during a press conference on Capitol Hill “Yet we have a commander-in-chief who is refusing to acknowledge the enemy, much less confront the enemy, much less do what it takes to defeat the enemy”. But the overall refugee flow into the US from the Syrian diaspora is still small.
“America is a charitable nation, but we can not allow charity for some to compromise the safety for all”, Abbott said during a news conference with Cruz in Washington, D.C. “That is what has happened by the way that the federal government has interpreted and applied the Refugee Act that already exists”.
The family’s arrival was closely watched because it comes after Texas officials said they wanted to ban new Syrian refugees following the deadly November 13 Paris attacks. Deemed the State Refugee Security Act, Cruz intends to gives states and governors the ability to address the challenges posed by refugee resettlement from countries inhabited by terrorist organizations. It has also fought harder than any other state to stop Syrian refugees after the recent terror attacks in Paris and San Bernardino. “It was nearly like breathing a sigh of relief that they have arrived”.
Once the resettlement process does restart at the U.S. Embassy, Fisher said, the initial focus will likely be on interviewing applicants already referred to the United States, rather than taking on new referrals.
The bill would require the federal government to give 21 days’ notice to any state receiving a refugee.
About 120,000 refugees are resettled worldwide each year, including to the United States, the largest recipient under the UNHCR’s program, according to the agency.
Last Friday, Dec. 4, the federal government and the IRC respond to the lawsuit, saying Texas has no legal authority to block the resettlement of government-approved refugees.
Slodysko reported from Indianapolis. It marked the first time the agency said publicly how many refugees it believes are stuck at the berm for months at a time.
Advertisement
“Due to safety and privacy concerns, we can’t disclose resettlement details of our client families”, said Chris Kelley, spokesman for Refugee Services of Texas.
