British PM meets Syrian refugees in Lebanon

Mr. Murphy, the highest-ranking Democratic member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s panel with jurisdiction over Middle East affairs, returned a few days ago from a trip to that unstable region, including a visit to a Syrian refugee camp in Jordan that the senator described as a “hellhole”.

Resettlement Director Robert Moser told KPBS that once a person or family fled their home from persecution of war or religion, the reality of how they’re going to live, stay together and maintain their culture becomes a concern.

“I would encourage others to step up to the plate and spend and invest in the way Britain has done” he said. But federal officials have yet to contact the state of Delaware over the potential placement of refugees in Delaware, Bachman said.

European governments have struggled to agree on a coordinated resettlement program and have alternated grand promises with sudden border closures, leaving a leadership gap once held by the United States.

As a result, those Syrian refugees still receiving support (only about 1/3 of the four million crammed into the countries around Syria) have to make do on less than 50 cents a day, half of what they used to get.

And the US? Well, it’s taken in around 1,500 people, or the enrollment size of a small liberal arts college.

Mr Mike McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, warned that fighters with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) could embed with refugees fleeing the conflict in Syria, creating a terrorism pipeline. Al Franken, D-Minn. – sent a letter in May to Obama urging him to increase the number of refugees allowed to resettle in the U.S.

An estimated 4.25 million Syrians are on the move within their own country, chased by the civil war sparked by Arab Spring protests in 2011 and the more recent intrusion of ISIS forces. About one million refugees are expected in Germany alone, according to global reports.

Refugees who come here must cut through a lot of red tape, Baer said. “So resettling 20,000 would represent 0.5 percent of all global Syrian refugees”. “It’s not as though hundreds of refugees, or thousands of refugees, are arriving every month”.

Refugees are not subject to the five-year limit many immigrants have for receiving the assistance and in turn are technically eligible for federal benefits like Medicaid and SNAP (food stamps), Fredel said. A state willing to provide shelter also needs to bear the cost of providing housing, employment and social benefits. “Knowing what they’re experiencing, their desire just to be safe, I hope they come”, said Jeff Watkins, vice president for global initiatives for the YMCA of Greater Houston. The way to enervating the power of rogue states and the influence of violent radicals may very well be providing asylum and opportunities to those people who want no part of either.

“We bring in 300 individuals (to Lancaster) per year”, she said.

“It’s such a question mark all of the time”, Savini said. We will go to Turkey and find a boat. To support these efforts, specify “Syrian Humanitarian Aid” as the designated country on the donation page.

Cameron also says, “Our goal remains to support the development of a secure, stable and peaceful Syria”.