Opening the Door to Syrian Refugees: Who are they?

A Homeland Security Concern

Over the last few weeks, the world has learned about the massive humanitarian crisis involving Syrians who have fled their homes due to escalated violence and fighting taking place in their country. The crisis began in March 2011 after demonstrations and protests turned violent against the government and protestors began fighting back.

Later that year, a group of Army defectors and civilians organized and formed the Free Syrian Army resulting in divisions between secular and Islamist fighters and ethnic groups. As reported in media reports, the civil war in Syria has lasted over four years and has killed over 220,000 people, half of them civilians. Widespread bombings are destroying their cities and horrific accounts of human rights violations are rampant.

The latest estimates note over 16 million people are in need of assistance and many of them have fled to different countries within Europe to seek refugee assistance. Over half of the Syrian population has fled to Turkey and over a million have fled to Jordan and Lebanon. Now, Syrians are fleeing to Greece, Hungary, and other parts around the globe.

Since the crisis situation escalated in 2012, the United States has admitted only about 1,500 Syrian refugees into the country, quietly placing them in communities within the United States. The reason for such a limited amount as stated by the Secretary of State John Kerry is “due to the post 9/11 rigid screening requirements and lack of funds”. Additionally, Secretary Kerry has added that he would increase the refugee number from 70,000 to 100,000 Syrian refugees by 2017.

However, critics are already voicing their concerns due to the United States not taking in more refugees. Is it our country’s moral responsibility to do so? Is Homeland Security prepared to verify the status of all of the arriving refugees to ensure that no terrorists or terrorist supporters are mixed within the crowd of refugees?

Reality is that the U.S. has spent more than $4 billion in aid for the Syrian humanitarian response to the crisis. Additionally, it continues to provide support in form of food, healthcare, and other logistical support.

Terror Concern

Top lawmakers have no interest in opening the doors of the U.S. to Syrian refugees as their main concern is that Islamic extremists will attempt exploit the humanitarian crisis situation and increase the chances of a “lone wolf” terrorist attacks taking place inside U.S. borders.

ISIS and other terror groups “have made it abundantly clear that they will use the refugee crisis to try to enter the United States. Now the Obama administration wants to bring in an additional 10,000 Syrians without a concrete and foolproof plan to ensure that terrorists won’t be able to enter the country,” Senate Judiciary Committee chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and his House counterpart, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), said in a statement.
Others think the opposite and embrace the opportunity to provide humanitarian aid and shelter to the thousands of refugees arriving in the United States.

The truth is that the State Department has a lot of work to do to clearly outline the procedures required for a thorough evaluation of every refugee application by working jointly with the Department of Homeland Security — U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; the National Counter-Terrorism Center; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation as only then will critics be satisfied that proper vetting has been done on each and every Syrian, Middle Eastern, African, and other nationals making their plea to become residents or citizens of these great United States. Absent these efforts, we run the risk of voluntarily weakening the good work that has already been done in strengthening our country’s national security.

This post was written by a homeland security official who wishes to remain anonymous as a team member for Inside Job and is not intended to represent the official position of anyone or anything other than the author.

Cover image: Relief effort for Syrian refugees in Kawrgosk refugee camp, Irbil, Northern Iraq. 21–23 August 2013, courtesy IHH Humanitarian Relief https://www.flickr.com/photos/ihhinsaniyardimvakfi/9577266320