Editor's note: Here is a look at immigration-related news around the U.S. this week. Questions? Tips? Comments? Email the VOA immigration team: ImmigrationUnit@voanews.com.
Officials Reject Claim That Biden Administration Is Secretly Bringing 320,000 Migrants to US
A Biden administration program aimed at reducing chaotic migrant arrivals at the U.S. southern border is being turned into a political issue by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and others who are casting it as a secretive bid to bring hundreds of thousands of migrants into the United States. VOA’s immigration reporter Aline Barros has more.
Afghan Student Shot at University Begs Taliban to Let Girls Learn
Breshna Musazai endured 19 agonizing months in Qatar, anxiously awaiting resettlement to the United States as a refugee. Forced to flee Afghanistan just two days after the Taliban seized Kabul in 2021, Musazai, who was injured in a campus shooting, found herself separated from her parents and her dreams shattered. VOA’s Akmal Dawi has more.
Son of Korean Immigrants Takes Charge of Los Angeles Police Department
A son of Korean immigrants last week became the interim chief of the Los Angeles Police Department. He is the first Asian American to hold this position. Genia Dulot has the story.
Asylum-Seekers Find Shelter at Washington State Church
Though the number of migrants crossing daily into the United States has fallen since December, local communities are still scrambling to provide them with resources. In the Pacific Northwest, Riverton Park United Methodist Church in Tukwila, Washington, has become a shelter for hundreds of asylum-seekers from Africa and Latin America. Produced by Natasha Mozgovaya.
Israel, Immigration Feature in Biden's State of the Union Speech
U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday attacked former President Donald Trump's vision for America, criticized Israel and was challenged on immigration in his last State of the Union address before the two men face off in the November U.S. election. Reuters reports.
Immigration around the world
Migrant Children Brave Darien Gap on Way to US Border
The Darien Gap is a dangerous stretch of jungle on a narrow strip of land that connects Colombia, in South America, to Panama in Central America. The path is taken by many migrants heading north to the U.S. border, and one in five of them is a child. Officials say the number of migrants traversing the perilous route is growing. For VOA, Austin Landis traveled to the starting point of their trek to hear some of their stories.
Ukraine's Young Circus Refugees Find New Home in Hungary
Hundreds of young Ukrainian circus performers have found a new home in Hungary since fleeing Russia’s invasion of their country. The Budapest Capital Circus, which has been putting on shows in the Hungarian capital since 1889, has taken in hundreds of young people between 5 and 20 years old over the past two years, along with several choreographers and trainers. Among them is 18-year-old Alesa Astapova, who fled her home in Kyiv as Russia’s tanks approached the capital in March 2022. Henry Ridgwell reports for VOA from London.
UNRWA Chief: Israel Conducting Campaign to Eliminate Palestinian Aid Agency
The head of the embattled United Nations agency that assists Palestinian refugees accused Israel on Monday of conducting a campaign to eliminate it, when more than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza are counting on their services to survive. “UNRWA is facing a deliberate and concerted campaign to undermine its operations and ultimately end them,” Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini told a special meeting of the U.N. General Assembly. UNRWA is the acronym for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. Reported by VOA’s United Nations Correspondent Margaret Besheer.
News brief
— The Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate unveiled a prototype checkpoint technology — a self-service screening system — at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada.
