Reality Check: Syrian Refugees In Minnesota
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Military experts now say 75 people were killed in the recent chemical warfare attack on innocent civilians in Syria.
Despite the humanitarian catastrophe, the United States accepted only 11 Syrian refugees this year.
And in Minnesota, even fewer.
The flow of Syrian refugees to the United States has slowed to a trickle. And in Minnesota, it stopped. That is despite chemical warfare against innocent civilians.
It is a civil war that has killed 400,000 people, and created millions of refugees:
But that is not the whole story. The United States is shutting the door on Syria.
Since Jan. 1, the U.S. has admitted only 11 Syrian refugees.
In Minnesota, the number is zero.
In 2017, Minnesota accepted 1,003 refugees.
Here is a partial list of the countries with the highest number of refugees settling in Minnesota:
But no Syrian refugees have been accepted into Minnesota since July 1, 2017
Here are the Minnesota Syrian refugee numbers since 2015:
The number of Syrian refugees in the U.S. dropped from 15,479 two years ago to 3,024 in President Donald Trump's first year. In 2018, there have been just 11 refugees.
It is because President Trump cut by more than half the number of all refugees coming to the U.S.
He is also limiting refugees from Muslim-majority countries, like Syria, because of terrorism threats.
Trump ordered a missile attack against Syria in retaliation for chemical warfare, but the U.S. does not appear to be prepared to accept refugee victims.
The president has indicated he will direct troops stationed in Syria now to leave the country.
"We're knocking the hell out of ISIS," Trump recently said. "We'll be coming out of Syria very soon. Let the other people take care of it. Very soon. Very soon."
Since January 1, 3,404 civilians have died in Syria.
Here Are Some Of The Sources We Used For This Reality Check:
MN Dept. Of Human Services: Minnesota Resettlement Programs
Migration Policy Institute: Syrian Refugees In The US
Pew Research Center: Key Facts About Refugees
World Vision: Syrian Refugee Crisis
