Almost 900 refugees who were set to arrive in the U.S. that were not from any of the seven countries in the travel ban will be allowed to enter the U.S. through Thursday, a Department of Homeland Security official announced.
The 872 refugees were already cleared and officially on their way to the U.S., Jennifer Sime, senior vice president for U.S. programs at the International Rescue Committee said in a Wall Street Journal report.
"They will be allowed to enter until Feb. 2, and we are expecting arrivals. After Friday, there will be no arrivals regardless of whether they are from the seven countries," Sime said, adding government officials had advised them on the issue Monday.
The travel ban bars refugee resettlement for 120 days, forbids entry into the U.S. of nationals from seven mostly-Muslim countries, and bans Syrian refugees from entering the country indefinitely. The Friday order led to chaotic situations in airports over the weekend, as well as protests in favor of refugees, according to the Journal.
About 2,000 refugees were set to arrive in the U.S. this week.
Melanie Nezer, vice president for policy and advocacy at the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, said that refugees in transit would be allowed in unless they were from one of the seven countries—Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
"Since most don’t live near a major international airport they may have started their journeys before the ban or this weekend. But we really don't know what will happen. Refugees that were supposed to come this week were from all over," Nezer said in the Journal report.
The U.S. has been accepting refugees from other countries besides those in the ban - the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar, and Bhutan, the Journal reported.
Nezer noted that the U.S. has a careful process to admit refugees.
Trump reduced the number of refugees the country will accept this fiscal year from 110,000 to 50,000. In the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2016, nearly 85,000 refugees arrived in the U.S. It takes up to two years for refugees to clear U.S. security screenings, according to the Journal.
Refugees who resettle often have given up possessions and personal ties, leaving them at a disadvantage if their plans to resettle are canceled, according to Reuters.
The 872 refugees were vetted using President Barack Obama's administration procedures, which includes multiple interviews and a background check, Reuters reported.
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