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.
Ukrainians Who Fled War Face End of Temporary US Sanctuary
When U.S. officials at the U.S.-Mexico border stamped the Ukrainian passports of Mariia and her daughter last April and gave them permission to stay for a year, she figured she would return home within months. Now with that year almost up and the war that caused them to flee still raging, their permission to stay in the U.S. — known as humanitarian parole — is set to expire April 23.
Virginia Nonprofit Helps Ukrainian Refugees Settle in US
More than 113,000 Ukrainians have temporarily resettled in the United States, thanks to the U.S. government program Uniting for Ukraine. But many of these refugees are finding themselves lost in a new country. A Virginia agency is helping them start their new lives. Ksenia Turkova has the story.
Judge Orders Halt to Fast Releases at US Border with Mexico
A federal judge Wednesday ordered the Biden administration to end the expedited releases of migrants who enter the United States illegally from Mexico, potentially straining already stretched holding facilities. Reported by The Associated Press.
In Reversal, Biden Weighs Detaining Migrant Families
The Biden administration is considering detaining migrant families who cross into the U.S. illegally as it prepares to end COVID-19 restrictions at the U.S.-Mexico border, according to U.S. officials familiar with the plans. That would be a major reversal after officials in late 2021 stopped holding families in detention facilities. Reported by The Associated Press.
Immigration around the world
103 Unaccompanied Minors Found in Abandoned Trailer in Mexico, Govt Says
Mexican authorities found 103 unaccompanied minors mostly from Guatemala inside an abandoned truck trailer in the eastern Mexican state of Veracruz, the government said Monday, in one of the biggest recent discoveries of migrant children traveling through Mexico. Reuters reports.
Britain to Detail Plan to Ban Asylum for Channel Migrants
Britain's government will set out details for a new law barring the entry of asylum seekers to the U.K. in small boats, a proposal that some refugee charities say could be impractical and criminalize the efforts of thousands of genuine refugees, Reuters reports.
Syrian Kurdish Refugee Families in Iraq Separate in Quest to Reach Europe
The deteriorating economic situation in Iraqi Kurdistan has prompted many Syrian men living there with their families as refugees to migrate to Europe. This has created unique challenges for the community, especially for the women and children that are left behind for the time-being. VOA’s Sirwan Kajjo reports from Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan.
UNHCR Seeks Support for Somalis Fleeing Las Anod Fighting Into Ethiopia
The United Nations Refugee Agency is calling for urgent support to help tens of thousands of Somalis who fled fighting in a disputed border town in Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland. The refugee agency is seeking urgent support for an estimated 100,000 Somalis who have fled to Ethiopia’s Somali region. Maya Misikir reports for VOA from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
At UN on International Women’s Day, Talk of Women’s Rights, Little Action
At United Nations meetings Wednesday to mark International Women’s Day, there was much talk but no discernible action on advancing and protecting women’s rights. Reported by U.N. Correspondent Margaret Besheer.
In brief
— The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced updates to its mobile biometric services.
— The White House released a summary of President Joe Biden's fiscal year 2024 budget request, which includes nearly $25 billion for U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement – an increase of almost $800 million from Fiscal Year 2023. It also provides $7.3 billion to the Office of Refugee Resettlement to support the refugee resettlement and the resettling of up to 125,000 refugees in 2024.
