As the case takes shape, a tangled web of terrorist operations in the U.S. has begun to unravel. The allegations brought against the young men have renewed discussion surrounding Minnesota’s ongoing terrorist recruiting problem, particularly among its Somali population—the largest Somali population in North America—that has struggled to keep extremist ideologies from preying on young members of its community.
According to an ongoing report from the Washington Post, a quarter of all people charged in the U.S. with alleged ties to ISIS hail from Minnesota, and most, if not all, are Somali-American, refugees or children of refugees who fled civil war in the early 90’s.
Refugees…terrorist recruiting problem…why does this all sound familiar? We have 85,700 Somalis in the United States, around 25,000 of whom live in Minnesota. Hmmm…oh, yea, now I remember…
The Obama administration will increase the number of worldwide refugees the United States accepts each year to 100,000 by 2017, a significant increase over the current annual cap of 70,000, Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday.
“This kind of piecemeal, incremental approach is simply not enough to effectively address this crisis,” said Eleanor Acer, director of the refugee protection program at Human Rights First, an advocacy group that has been pressing the United States to take 100,000 Syrians alone next year. “This minimal increase for next year is certainly not a strong response to the largest refugee crisis since World War II.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/21/world/europe/us-to-increase-admission-of-refugees-to-100000-in-2017-kerry-says.html?_r=1