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Syrian Refugees Could End Up in US

State Department 'ready to consider the idea,' official says
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 10, 2013 8:36 AM CDT
Syrian Refugees Could End Up in US
In this Monday, Dec. 10, 2012 photo, a Syrian woman who fled her home cries while asking for a pillow and a blanket at a distribution at a camp for displaced Syrians, in the village of Atmeh, Syria.   (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen, File)

Thousands of Syrian refugees could end up living in America, as Washington and other international capitals consider a resettlement plan to help relieve the Middle Eastern countries that have so far taken in 1.6 million refugees. The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees has not yet made a formal request to the State Department, but if it does, the State Department is "ready to consider the idea," a department official tells the Los Angeles Times.

UN officials will discuss plans with diplomats and nongovernmental relief groups this week in Geneva. "There will be resistance," predicts the CEO of one refugee advocacy group. Though the Obama administration and many lawmakers are wary of getting more deeply involved in Syria, Susan Rice and Samantha Power are more open to refugees and could sway things. If it does happen, where might the refugees go? California has taken the most in past cases, and a fair number have also ended up in Illinois, Florida, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia. (More Syria stories.)

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