Somali refugees who were to be resettled in US cannot travel following Trump's ban
TUESDAY
JANUARY 31 2017
Megitu
Argo (left) and her daughter Ebany Turn cry as a family of Somali refugees
speaks about their cousin's deportation back to Somalia at a rally for
immigrants and refugees in Seattle, Washington on January 29, 2017. PHOTO |
JASON REDMOND | AFP
In Summary
According
to United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 13,000 of these refugees had
been interviewed by US officials and were scheduled to travel from this week.
The
other 13,000 people are yet be interviewed by the US state department.
By FAITH NYAMAI
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More
than 26,000 Somali refugees in Kenya who were to be resettled in the United
States (US) can not travel to the country following President Donald Trump's
travel ban against people from seven
Muslim-majority countries including Somalia.
According
to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 13,000 of these
refugees had been interviewed by US officials and were scheduled to travel from
this week.
The
other 13,000 people are yet be interviewed by the US Department of State.
According
to Yvonne Ndege, an officer at the UNHCR office in Nairobi, they had listed the
26,000 people for processing and resettlement in the US. However, following Mr
Trump’s travel ban on Muslims, they cannot travel.
Ms
Ndege sai, of the 26,000 people affected, about 14,500 are from Dadaab refugee
camp who left after the Kenyan government closed it last year.
On
Tuesday, reports indicated that some of these refugees in Kenya were told they
could not travel to the US at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport when they
were awaiting their flights.
But on
Tuesday, airport officials said they have not turned any Somali refugees from
travelling to the US.
Airport
Police Boss Zipporah Waweru told the Nation that
they had no Somali refugee destined for the US.
Filippo
Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, had said 800 refugees were set
to make America their new home.
Mr
Grandi said because of the ban, the refugees are anxious, confused and
heartbroken.
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