US extends status for Syrians but cuts off new arrivals
WASHINGTON - The Trump administration said on Wednesday that it would allow nearly 7,000 Syrians to remain in the United States for another 18 months but won't let more Syrian citizens apply for the special protection program.
The decision was a partial relief for aid organizations and advocates for displaced Syrians who had feared President Donald Trump might end the program entirely, forcing those in the US to leave or face deportation.
Yet those same groups criticized the president for excluding more recent arrivals to the US, pointing out that Syria remains devoid of any notion of stability or normalcy.
Under a humanitarian program known as "Temporary Protected Status", thousands of Syrians have been allowed to avoid returning to their war-torn country of origin. The current program has been set to expire on Mar 31, forcing Trump to decide whether to extend.
Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said "ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary conditions" justified giving those in the program another year and a half to remain in the US.
"After carefully considering conditions on the ground, I have determined that it is necessary to extend," Neilsen said.
Only those who have been in the US since Aug 1 are eligible for that extension, disqualifying newer arrivals. Still, Neilsen said those who came to the US more recently "may be eligible to seek other forms of immigration relief".
Syria remains entangled in a bloody civil war with no signs of near-term resolution. Although the Islamic State group has been squeezed from almost all of its former territory, armed opposition groups continue to fight with each other, with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces and with extremist groups that still pose a threat across Syria.
US military forces are active both on the ground and in the skies. In areas liberated from IS, the US has said much work is needed to restore basic services like water, sewage and electricity.
The decision follows a contentious debate within the Trump administration about whether to cut off the program, with immigration hardliners in the White House urging a total halt to the program while the State Department and many lawmakers argued for continuing it.
The US created Temporary Protected Status in 1990 to provide a safe haven from countries affected by earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, war and other disasters, and it currently shields several hundred thousand people from 10 countries.
Associated Press
(China Daily 02/02/2018 page11)
