News Intro Text
[National Catholic Register, November 25, 2015]
Date
News Item Content
<p>BY MATT HADRO/CNA</p>
<p>WASHINGTON — As the U.S. plans to increase its intake of Syrian refugees to 10,000 next year, Americans — including Catholics — are trying to balance national security concerns with compassion for the refugees. </p>
<p>“Americans need to understand that responding to a core tenant of our faith to provide compassion and care to suffering people like Syrian refugees and maintaining national security are not mutually exclusive — it is not an either-or proposition,” said <span class="maroon">Susan Weishar, a migration fellow at the Jesuit Social Research Institute</span>, who directed immigration and refugee services for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New Orleans for 14 years.</p>
<p>“A rigorous, multilayered and lengthy vetting and security-clearance procedure is in place to screen refugees,” she told CNA. “As the leader of the free world, the wealthiest democracy on the planet, the U.S. must not turn its back on the Syrian refugees.”</p>
<p>However, there are intelligence gaps that could jeopardize the vetting process for refugees, said Seth Jones, who directs the International Security and Defense Policy Center at the Rand Corp. </p>
<p>“I actually think the U.S. needs better intel collection in Syria. So I would actually push more resources to setting up a technical architecture in Syria and then resources for human collection in Syria,” he told CNA.</p>
<p><strong>Debate Over Refugees</strong></p>
<p>The Obama administration has announced its plan to accept at least 10,000 Syrian refugees into the U.S. next year. The U.S. has only accepted close to 2,000 Syrian refugees total since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in 2011, and 1,682 of those were accepted in Fiscal Year 2015.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/compassion-vs.-security-what-to-do-with-syrian-refugees?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NCRegisterDailyBlog+National+Catholic+Register#When%3A2015-11-25+14%3A43%3A01">MORE>></a></p>
<p>WASHINGTON — As the U.S. plans to increase its intake of Syrian refugees to 10,000 next year, Americans — including Catholics — are trying to balance national security concerns with compassion for the refugees. </p>
<p>“Americans need to understand that responding to a core tenant of our faith to provide compassion and care to suffering people like Syrian refugees and maintaining national security are not mutually exclusive — it is not an either-or proposition,” said <span class="maroon">Susan Weishar, a migration fellow at the Jesuit Social Research Institute</span>, who directed immigration and refugee services for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New Orleans for 14 years.</p>
<p>“A rigorous, multilayered and lengthy vetting and security-clearance procedure is in place to screen refugees,” she told CNA. “As the leader of the free world, the wealthiest democracy on the planet, the U.S. must not turn its back on the Syrian refugees.”</p>
<p>However, there are intelligence gaps that could jeopardize the vetting process for refugees, said Seth Jones, who directs the International Security and Defense Policy Center at the Rand Corp. </p>
<p>“I actually think the U.S. needs better intel collection in Syria. So I would actually push more resources to setting up a technical architecture in Syria and then resources for human collection in Syria,” he told CNA.</p>
<p><strong>Debate Over Refugees</strong></p>
<p>The Obama administration has announced its plan to accept at least 10,000 Syrian refugees into the U.S. next year. The U.S. has only accepted close to 2,000 Syrian refugees total since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in 2011, and 1,682 of those were accepted in Fiscal Year 2015.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/compassion-vs.-security-what-to-do-with-syrian-refugees?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NCRegisterDailyBlog+National+Catholic+Register#When%3A2015-11-25+14%3A43%3A01">MORE>></a></p>