Obama to Grant Asylum to 500,000 (Mostly Muslim) Syrian Refugees
Several high ranking Democratic officials were spotted late this evening leaving the famed Capitol Hill watering hole Tortilla Coast.Â  On the menu, discussions of President Obamaâs decision to grant political asylum to 500,000 (mostly Muslim) Syrian refugees.Â  According to sources present at the meeting, the group gathered to discuss the details of the decision and to iron out talking points prior to the public announcement. Following a report recently released from Amnesty International that Jordan had forcibly removed thousands of refugees to their home country, the Obama administration has decidedÂ to take action.Â  âAmnesty is extremely concerned about this trend. While Jordan has made tremendous efforts to accommodate half a million refugees, and is facing pressures as a result, these do not justify such violations of international law,â says Amnestyâs Neil Sammonds, who worked on the report. The UN has also released a report stating that Syrians in Jordan now account for 10 percent of the countryâs total population and Jordanâs economy simply cannot support such a large influx of immigrants.Â  Approximately 2 million Syrian refugees have fled to neighboring countries in the region including Jordan,Â Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon.Â Â Â According to the report, 6 million Syrianâs are in desperate need of help and 4 million have been displaced due to the ongoing Syrian civil war. The Syrian civil war broke out on March 15, 2011 and nationwide demonstrations grew large by April 2011 as part of the protest movement known as the Arab Spring.Â  The protesters demanded the immediate resignation of President Bahar al-Assad, whose family has been in power since 1971. While the meeting was held behind closed doors in the basement, several members of the party spoke with National Report and confirmed that Obama plans on announcing his intent to grant these refugees asylum within days.Â  The refugees will be granted immediate citizenship status under the guise of political asylum due to intense fighting that has killed 120,000+ citizens.Â  Camps are being setup in rural areas across the country to temporarily house the refugees complete with FEMA housing, temporary Mosques and schools. You can donate to help the refugees at Islamic Relief USA. Find more information at the Christian Science Monitor. Â