Dear Friend,

Last week, we sent a petition update indicating that Mohammed’s refugee case was not among the very few that resulted in resettlement of only 161 U.S.-affiliated Iraqis in the fiscal year which ended September 30.   While 4,000 refugee slots were allocated for U.S.-affiliated Iraqis, 3,839 of them were not filled due to current immigration policy that practically slams the door shut on thousands of allies who risked their lives for our troops.

The issue was featured in an excellent piece in Sunday’s New York Times that is linked below.   Although our case is not highlighted in the story, it features a similar one involving another Iraqi family torn apart as a result of their service to America.    

While the stories of only a few, like ours, are told, there are over 110,000 U.S. –affiliated Iraqis waiting to be approved as refugees based on their sacrifice to our nation.   Many will be killed because of their decision to aid our troops.  Yet, our country offered refuge to only 161 of these individuals over the past year.

Think about this again:  161 resettled out of over 110,000 waiting in danger.  These are human lives, not just numbers.  These are individuals who each have a story as to how they aided America and have been left behind as a result.  These are the stories of individuals who continue to suffer because they put our interests and safety before their own.

With eyes on the election, we are strategizing our next move and will soon be in touch with our next call to action.  We hope to have many more updates in the upcoming weeks. Thank you for your support and for staying in the fight with us.

Pete