Republican Senator from Missouri, Josh Hawley, wrote a letter to the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Alejandro Mayorkas, regarding the number of illegal aliens allowed to enter the country and who could be linked to terrorism.
Since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out, international concerns about terrorist threats have increased. Europe has already had to take action against the risks that have arisen, and the United States may have to do the same, especially after receiving an email about a bomb threat.
Given this concern and the number of illegal immigrants arriving in the country with possible links to terrorism, Hawley decided to contact Mayorkas and ask him how the safety of Americans will be guaranteed.
“I write with alarm regarding the uptick in potential terrorist-linked illegal aliens encountered at the southern border. This development follows the barbaric attack perpetrated by Hamas terrorists on innocent American and Israeli civilians. It is imperative that you address this issue immediately to ensure the safety of American citizens, especially Jewish Americans, who are facing increased threats to their physical safety following the Hamas attack,” Hawley wrote to Mayorkas, as reported by Fox News.
Hawley pushes Mayorkas on encounters of 'special interest aliens' into US amid terror fears https://t.co/wyrmDEdIJN via @foxnews
— Chris 🇺🇸 (@Chris_1791) October 18, 2023
The increase in terrorism suspects at the border
The number of terrorism suspects who have tried to enter the country has grown considerably, according to data from the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency.
In just the first six months of 2023, more people included in the Terrorist Monitoring Database (382) have been arrested than in all of 2022 (380), and this number has continued to grow.
Thousands of “special interest aliens” have been arrested in the last two years, many of them from countries such as Afghanistan, Egypt, Iran, Syria, and Turkey, among other Middle Eastern nations. These foreigners are identified in this way because they come from countries that promote or protect terrorism or could represent a potential risk to national security. Right now, the danger could be greater, which is why Hawley asked Mayorkas to abandon “his radical open border policies” and begin taking measures to protect American citizens.
