Ambassador Asks US to Issue Visas to Iraqi Workers

Baghdad envoy speaks up for imperiled locals
By Marie Morris,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 22, 2007 11:35 AM CDT
Ambassador Asks US to Issue Visas to Iraqi Workers
Britain's Chancellor Gordon Brown meets General Petraeus , left, and US Ambassador Ryan Crocker at the US Embassy in Bahgdad, Iraq, during a visit to the region Monday June 11, 2007. Prime minister-in-waiting Gordon Brown flew into Baghdad Monday and pledged to "learn the lessons" of events in the run-up...   (Associated Press)

Fearing for the safety of locals employed by the American government in Iraq, the US ambassador wants the administration to issue them immigrant visas. Ryan Crocker's unusual request spotlights competing pressures, the Washington Post reports: the danger to Iraqis perceived as aiding the occupiers, the worsening refugee crisis, and Washington's concern that terrorists will slip into the country.

Calls for US withdrawal have escalated even as millions of displaced Iraqis have moved within the country and fled across its borders. Human-rights organizations, diplomats, and Congress are cranking up pressure on the administration, but critics say acknowledging the extent of the refugee would mean admitting the US strategy in Iraq has failed, further muddying the waters. (More refugee stories.)

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