In a letter to top Administration officials, Senator Warnock and 15 of his colleagues advocated for expanded assistance for relatives of U.S. citizens stranded in Gaza
This month, Senator Warnock cosponsored an amendment that would require any country receiving weapons under proposed national security funding legislation to use them in accordance with U.S. law and international humanitarian law
Last year, Senator Warnock pushed the Biden Administration to support Israel’s defense while taking action to provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza civilians caught in the crossfire
More than 20,000 Palestinian civilians have lost their lives in the aftermath of the deadly October 7 terror attacks against innocent Israelis
Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock, lawmakers: “As a result of the dangerous circumstances on the ground, we urge you to quickly implement these changes in policy to help U.S. citizens and their family members get out of harm’s way”
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) joined Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) and 14 additional Senate colleagues in calling on U.S. Secretary of State Secretary Antony Blinken and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to expand assistance for relatives of U.S. citizens stranded in Gaza. The Senators expressed concerns about the current limited eligibility criteria for State Department assistance and advocated for the inclusion of additional family members beyond current practices. They also urged the Department of Homeland Security to implement expedited processes for adjudicating Gaza residents’ applications for humanitarian parole to the United States. Additionally, the Senators requested information on the current processes in place to assist individuals stuck in Gaza who would otherwise be eligible for visas or visa renewals.
“We thank you for your steadfast leadership during this trying time, and we appreciate the State Department’s tireless work to help American citizens and their families who are or were trapped in Gaza during the current Israel-Hamas conflict. We represent constituents who are desperately seeking their family members’ safe departure from Gaza. Today, we write to urge you to expand the eligibility criteria for those able to receive State Department assistance in departing Gaza beyond immediate family members of American citizens and enhance the level of U.S. assistance to relatives of American citizens who have safely departed Gaza and seek to be united with their loved ones in the United States,” the Senators wrote.
The Senators explained that although the United States lacks authority over who can leave Gaza via the Rafah Cross into Egypt, it remains imperative that the State Department exert maximum effort toward helping American citizens and their families swiftly and securely depart the region.
Additionally, the Senators expressed serious concerns about several aspects of the current process to help U.S. citizens and their family members currently trapped in Gaza, and seek answers from the State Department for the following questions:
- What is the basis for the current State Department policy regarding the categories of people eligible for the Department’s assistance in departing Gaza through the Rafah Crossing?
- What processes are in place to assist individuals stuck in Gaza who would otherwise be eligible for consideration for visas or visa renewals but who have had visas expire during the current conflict?
Currently, the State Department considers the following people eligible for U.S. assistance in submitting their names to the relevant Egyptian and Israeli authorities for the ability to cross the border into Egypt at the Rafah Crossing:
- U.S. citizens and their spouses, unmarried children under the age of 21, parents, and unmarried siblings under the age of 21 if their U.S. citizen sibling is also under the age of 21; and
- Lawful permanent residents with an unexpired green card and their spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21.
“We believe the above limited groups of people currently eligible for assistance from the Department are too narrow and restrict our ability to secure the safe departure of U.S. citizen family members, including their brothers, sisters, nieces, and nephews, who are caught in the crossfire of this conflict. We urge the Department to quickly expand the categories of people eligible for this assistance to include, at a minimum, any American citizen’s children, siblings, and sibling’s spouses and children—regardless of marital status and age—as well as unmarried grandchildren under the age of 21,” the lawmaker continued.
“In addition to the State Department submitting the information of those who seek to leave Gaza to the relevant authorities, we urge the Department of Homeland Security to expedite the review and adjudication of Gaza residents’ applications for humanitarian parole in the United States, including for eligible persons that remain stuck in Gaza and are unable to physically appear in-person at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate for parole processing. It’s critical to ensure that people who are eligible for humanitarian parole have ready access to this process and the protection it provides.
“As a result of the dangerous circumstances on the ground, we urge you to quickly implement these changes in policy to help U.S. citizens and their family members get out of harm’s way,” the lawmakers concluded.
In addition to U.S. Senators Reverend Raphael Warnock and Cory Booker (D-NJ), the letter is cosigned by U.S. Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), John Fetterman (D-PA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark Warner (D-VA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Peter Welch (D-VT).
Read the full text of the letter HERE.
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