"It's so hard, especially for the Afghan supporters who are coming here,” IINE Managing Director at our Manchester office Henry Harris told WMUR-TV following President Donald Trump's executive order suspending the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program that has left many Afghan refugees awaiting flights in limbo. The executive order endangers those fleeing violence and persecution in their home countries, including Afghan refugees facing the threat of the Taliban. Read the full article: https://hubs.li/Q033ZLl_0 #refugeeswelcome #refugeeresettlement #executiveorders #afghanimmigrants #immigration #afghanistan
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Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist and Director of LUpus Patients Understanding & Support (LUPUS) & Independent Researcher on Antisemitism
Recent media reports cited top officials in the Biden administration as saying they are considering granting refugees from Gaza permanent status in the US. The claim was first reported in CBS News which claimed to have obtained “internal federal government documents” showing “senior officials across several federal U.S. agencies [who] have discussed the practicality of different options to resettle Palestinians from Gaza who have immediate family members who are American citizens or permanent residents.” The Gazans would be brought into the US as part of the United States Refugee Admissions Program Ironically, the plan would require coordination with Egypt, which has so far refused to welcome refugees from Gaza. Upon arriving in the US, the Gazans would be granted permanent residency, resettlement benefits like housing assistance, and a path to American citizenship. A letter rejecting the potential proposal was led by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), the number three GOP leader, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and 33 colleagues. “With more than a third of Gazans supporting the Hamas militants, we are not confident that your administration can adequately vet this high-risk population for terrorist ties and sympathies before admitting them into the United States,” the letter stated. “We are further worried that accepting Gazan refugees might cause a crisis at the Egypt-Gaza border, leading to chaos that would only empower Iran-backed Hamas. We are also frustrated that your administration is pushing ahead with a plan to evacuate Gazans from the Strip when there are still American citizens held hostage by Hamas. We demand that your administration cease planning for accepting Gazan refugees until you adequately answer our concerns and focus your attention instead on securing the release of U.S. hostages held by Hamas.” In 2007, Gazans voted in Hamas as the ruling power. A recent poll showed that 82% of Palestinians in the West Bank & 57% in the Gaza Strip approve of the actions by Hamas’ armed wing, including the October 7 attack on Israel and hostage taking. Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fl.) “The latest in Joe Biden’s America Last agenda is an absurd scheme to bring into our country the people who cheered as Americans & Israelis were killed, beaten, raped, and taken hostage on October 7th,” he said. “These are the same people who elected Hamas as their government. These are people who live next to Egypt, yet Egypt finds them too much of a national security risk to let into their country.” Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) called the move “reckless.” “The open border isn’t enough,” the twitter account representing Senate Republicans wrote. “Now Biden wants to import people who supported the murder & rape of Israelis.” https://lnkd.in/dFFf-b-z
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Evaluation of the Refugee Resettlement Program This report, prepared by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada / Immigration, Réfugiés et Citoyenneté Canada, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), outlines the findings of the evaluation of the Refugee Resettlement Program. The evaluation examines the program's relevance, performance, and governance for the period from January 2016 to December 2021. https://lnkd.in/dDaHijEf
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New Post: Trump's order: The future of thousands of Afghan refugees who supported the US against Taliban is also in the dark. - https://lnkd.in/dmZf9XFS Islamabad: US President Donald Trump has issued an executive order to suspend the refugee program. His move has put a big question mark on the fate of thousands of Afghans living in Pakistan. Under the US refugee program, more than 25,000 Afghan citizens fleeing Afghanistan and living in Pakistan were to eventually be resettled in America. These were the people who had fled from Taliban-ruled Afghanistan to Pakistan and were waiting for rehabilitation in America for years.What was the whole matter?According to the agreement between the Pakistan government and the Biden administration, it was agreed between the two countries that more than 25,000 Afghans would later be resettled in the US. Most of them had worked with the US military and its contractors before the Taliban took power in Kabul in August 2021Islamabad initially hoped that this agreement would be for the temporary stay of Afghan citizens in the country. However, there has been no progress on this for the last three and a half years.Senior strategic analyst Kamran Yusuf said, "The Biden administration had assured Pakistan that Afghans would be resettled through initiatives such as the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) and the US Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). But now, Trump's executive After the order, the entire process has been disrupted."America's responseIt is also reported that the US government has suspended the visas of at least 1,660 Afghans for resettlement in the US along with their families. "This is happening on the heels of Trump's order to suspend the US refugee program," an official said. This decision of Washington has now put the fate of these Afghan citizens in Pakistan in danger.Syed Liaqat Banori, president of the Society for Human Rights and Prisoners Aid (SHARP), said, "These unfortunate Afghans are now facing many problems and serious issues. They are in Pakistan, a country that expels illegal Afghans from their country. "In Afghanistan, these people are at risk of being arrested and killed because the Afghan Taliban is against all people who served with the US military before August 2021."Pakistan government sources have also expressed serious concern over the latest developments. An official said, "We knew that this refugee program could come under scrutiny after President Trump took office, but the way the new administration has handled it is surprising."(This news has not been edited by NDTV team. It is published directly from the syndicate feed.)
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The hardest way to come into the United States is through the #refugee program. It takes an average of five years to be approved and welcomed as a refugee. Worldwide, more than 80 million displaced people are looking for refuge; less than 1% of refugees are resettled. It's no wonder that we have seen an increase in recent years of Afghans, Sudanese, and Somalis desperate to find refuge traveling through the Darian gap to get here. The government issues a Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions every year — a refugee cap — that was increased to 125,000 refugees by President Biden in 2024 after it was dramatically cut to 15,000-18,000 under the Trump administration. Yet, consistently, year after year, the U.S. government is failing to help resettle as many people as it could. We need more efficient processes that help us to, at the very least, consistently reach this goal. For example, in Canada, the average processing time is up to four months. We also need to ensure that we are setting them up to succeed in the United States in the short, medium, and long term. Refugees are usually worse off after 5 years than when they first arrived. With only three months of support on average, learning English and finding work with adequate pay are critical steps to get right. We need to invest more in the infrastructure of cities so they’re better prepared to welcome, help settle, and include refugees in local communities and the workforce. The administration is focused on continuing to rebuild the refugee program and getting people in. This is truly commendable and so important. However, it is equally important that refugees are set up to find skill-aligned work, become well-established, and thrive over the medium and long term once they’re here. https://lnkd.in/evwCRr-n
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#Afghanistan / #Embarrassment - Bottom line up front - The Trump administration is right to review all policies, as they are problematic and require a course correction. To be clear, teammates, this is a hard post. I don't know many people who care more about what happened in Afghanistan than me. Not that they're not out there, but this is really something deep with me personally. And yet, this NPR article is a perfect example why the last 3 years of the Biden administration have made me feel embarrassed to me as an American. Read the article...but while I feel for this individual's circumstances, and the utter destitute of millions of Afghans...how is this individual somehow fitting the title of the article or the picture of Afghan security forces partnering with the U.S. troops? Think about it "Afghans who helped the U.S. are in dangerous limbo after Trump's order on refugees"...how is someone who worked on "women's rights projects for the U.S. Embassy" somehow an Afghan who helped the U.S.? She was an Afghan who benefited from decades of U.S. foreign aid, but NOT someone who "helped the U.S."... This is absurd. Yesterday, I saw another similar article about a 20-year old Afghan in Pakistan who was "in limbo" because he had made his way to Pakistan...but his SIV was being delayed because of this 90-day pause...Again, folks, he's 20...when we left in 2021 he was likely 17...how was this kid an "Afghan ally" in need of evacuation? Meanwhile, I still have my employees, vetted by MOD, MOI, NDS, and with their records in the hands of Haqqani network led Taliban intelligence apparatus, who can't get sorted, and now 3 years later I can't vouch for their state of mind. Think...common sense here... NPR you should be ashamed for your portrayal of a serious problem with such...someone who worked on women's issues in Kabul isn't being hunted down and shot by the Taliban...others are...so at least make a case out of something substantive. And, by the way, why do these articles never mentioning that there are still potential threats to the homeland emanating from Afghanistan, that perhaps we need to take stock of....
#Afghanistan - #Immigration - #Refugees - Afghans who helped the U.S. are in dangerous limbo after Trump's order on refugees - from NPR: Surayya's flight to the United States was already booked when President Trump ordered a pause on the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program. Not long after, her flight was canceled and her stomach dropped. "I don't know what to do," she said. "If I go back to Afghanistan, I will be prosecuted or even be killed by the Taliban." Surayya, who asked NPR not to use her full name for safety reasons, used to work on women's rights projects with the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. But when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, Surayya and her children fled to neighboring Pakistan. There, she applied for resettlement in the U.S. and was approved. Now, Surayya's future and safety look uncertain, along with tens of thousands of other Afghans who risked their lives working for the U.S. government or military. During Trump's first day in office, the president issued an executive order to pause refugee applications and travel plans, citing concerns over the country's capacity to absorb large numbers of refugees. It remains unclear how long the suspension will last, but the order does allow the secretary of state and the secretary of homeland security to admit refugees on a "case-by-case basis." The U.S. State Department did not respond to NPR's request for comment. The U.S. is home to over 200,000 Afghans who arrived as refugees, according to Shawn VanDiver, a military veteran and the president of #AfghanEvac, a nonprofit that helps people from Afghanistan resettle in America. Around the world, over 40,000 Afghans are still actively pursuing resettlement in the U.S., with more than 10,000 approved to relocate by the U.S. government. Many of those affected by the pause on the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) are Afghan lawyers and judges who put Taliban fighters behind bars, as well as members of the Afghan military who trained and fought alongside American troops. The families of about 200 active duty U.S. service members are also being impacted, VanDiver said. Story continues: https://lnkd.in/eH9YgCWU
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Important Update for Refugee Protection Claimants in Canada 🇨🇦 As of April 1, 2025, expired Refugee Protection Claimant Documents (RPCDs) will no longer be considered valid. If your RPCD has expired or has been lost, destroyed, or stolen, you can now apply for a renewal or replacement using Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada's (IRCC) convenient web form. To complete the web form and for more information, visit the "Replace your refugee protection claimant document" page on the IRCC website. Please note that old paper application forms sent by mail will no longer be processed and will be returned to the applicant. An alternative option for those who need accommodation will be posted on the RPCD replacement page in the coming weeks. Once your request is processed, you will receive your renewed RPCD by mail or be asked to pick it up at your local IRCC office. Remember, your RPCD is an essential and secure Canadian photo ID that grants you access to the Interim Federal Health Program and other services while your claim is being processed. Stay informed and take action to ensure you have a valid RPCD. Visit the IRCC website for more details: https://lnkd.in/eEjHhg8E Don't wait, renew your RPCD today! 🔐📜 #RefugeeProtection #AsylumClaimants #RPCD #ImmigrationCanada #IRCC #RefugeeSupport #CanadaImmigration #RefugeeRights #RefugeeClaimants #SecureID
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Curious about how to file a refugee claim after arriving in Canada? Check out Al Parsai's latest article to learn the process and understand your responsibilities. #RefugeeClaims #ImmigrationLaw #RCIC #Refugees https://lnkd.in/g-pAGchd
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Growing asylum claimants to Canada from more troubled parts of the world create work for Ottawa. Namely the Immigration and Refugee Board. As annual asylum seekers have increased in past years, so to has the cumulative backlog of refugee claims, The Hub Canada's data visualization journalist Kiernan Green reports. This March there were 187,000 refugee protection claims pending before the Immigration and Refugee Board. In 2015, it was under 10,000. Refugee claims are supposed to be heard within 60 days by law now take up to three years. Christopher Alexander, Canada’s immigration minister (2013-2015), writes about this task in his most recent Hub article. Its salient point: despite its benefits, immigration will not solve Canada’s issues with debt, standard of living and foreign investment. Read his full article: https://lnkd.in/gkMPZA44 You can also check out Kiernan Green's graph here: https://lnkd.in/giW2sn8P
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Immigration, Federal Litigation and Economic Sanctions Attorney at Law Office of Heidi J Meyers
Clarification - USRAP (US Refugee Admissions Program) is suspended as of 01/27/2025. This should not affect those who are coming to the US as immediate relatives of US citizens, and other categories of legal immigrants not in the refugee program. DOS and DHS are to report to the President every 90 days on the refugee program and whether it is 'in the interests of the US'. The refugee program is to remain suspended until President Trump decides otherwise. Regarding other categories of legal immigration, there is now a freeze on hiring, and as with the first Trump administration, where many US State Dept employees resigned or retired, and there was no hiring of new Foreign Service Officers, it is expected that low levels of personnel in our US Consulates and Embassies abroad will slow down visa processing. #USRAP #refugee #admissions #family #immigration #State https://lnkd.in/e3n2qgFz
