UNHCR: Refugees 'Anxious, Confused and Heartbroken' over Travel Ban
By Ken Schwartz January 30, 2017
People are "anxious, confused, and heartbroken" after being told they cannot come to the U.S. after having undergone a lengthy application process, according to Filippo Grandi of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Grandi said in a statement from his Geneva office Monday that he is "deeply worried" about what will happen to thousands of people from Syria and six other Muslim majority countries who are affected by Presided Donald Trump's temporary ban on resettlement.
"Refugees share the very same concerns about security and safety that Americans have," the statement says. "They themselves are fleeing war, persecution, oppression and terrorism."
The UNHCR estimates that 20,000 refugees in "precarious circumstances" would have been able to come to the U.S. during the 120-day period that refugees are barred.
The commissioner says he hopes they will be able to come to the U.S. and rebuild their lives in safety and dignity as soon as possible.
Also Monday, the U.N. Children's Fund said 28 million children worldwide whose lives have been destroyed by violence and terror need help.
The United States has a "long and proud tradition of protecting children," it said, adding that it hopes the ban on refugees will, in fact, be temporary.
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