RI in the News

Lately we’ve been able to draw a lot of attention to Iraqi refugees seeking resettlement in the United States. Kristele Younes, one of our Iraqi refugee experts, was interviewed by National Public Radio’s All Things Considered earlier this week. Matt Lee from the Associated Press continued to report on the numbers of Iraqi refugees that the U.S. has allowed to resettle here. There was a significant increase in Iraqis allowed in last month -- 529 compared to 57 in July -- bringing our total for this year to 719. Slowly but surely, as they say.

In similar news, Baghdad Burning, one of the more prominent Iraq bloggers, has had to escape Iraq with her family. She’s been tossing the decision back and forth the last several weeks, but the new limitations with Syria’s visa policies expedited her decision making process. It may just be one story out of many, but it’s easy to overlook what the experience must be like for Iraqis facing regular violence and threats. The post on her escape is harrowing and touching, highlighting the life of one of the many people who didn’t want to leave their homes but had seemingly no other choice. Let’s hope that she is now safe.

Also in the press this week was Ban Ki-Moon’s visit to Darfur and the new peace talks scheduled for October 27. Ken Bacon was a panelist on the Diane Rehm show, discussing the visit and the future of Darfur with several other guests.