Biden considers bringing Palestinians to US as 'refugees': Report

The Biden administration is weighing bringing some Palestinians from Gaza to the United States as "refugees," according to a Tuesday report from CBS News.

The media outlet obtained documents that revealed senior officials with several federal agencies are discussing where to "resettle" Palestinians looking to flee.

Palestine nationals "with U.S. ties" who have already left Gaza and relocated to Egypt could be brought to the U.S. under the United States Refugee Admissions Program, according to the inter-agency documents obtained by CBS News. Those still in Gaza with family members who are American citizens or permanent residents could also be processed through the program, the documents stated. CBS News reported that the floated plan would require coordination with Egypt, which has refused to take Palestinians.

The program, created in 1980, has been used to relocate over 400,000 foreign nationals but has never been used to resettle large numbers of Palestinians.

According to the news outlet, to qualify for refugee status, the individuals would have to pass eligibility, medical, and security screenings. The program would provide permanent residency, housing assistance, and a path to citizenship.

The "eligible population is expected to be relatively small," CBS News claimed.

A recent Arab World for Research and Development poll found that 75% of Palestinians supported Hamas' October 7 terrorist attack that slaughtered Israeli citizens. Approximately 76% said they had a favorable view of Hamas.

"Respondents were universally negative in assessing the role of the United States of America (USA) and Israel," the poll's results read.

A White House spokesperson told the outlet that the Biden administration "has helped more than 1,800 American citizens and their families leave Gaza, many of whom have come to the United States. At President Biden's direction, we have also helped, and will continue to help, some particularly vulnerable individuals, such as children with serious health problems and children who were receiving treatment for cancer, get out of harm's way and receive care at nearby hospitals in the region."

The spokesperson added that the administration "categorically rejects any actions leading to the forced relocation of Palestinians from Gaza or the West Bank or the redrawing of the borders of Gaza. The best path forward is to achieve a sustainable cease-fire through a hostage deal that will stabilize the situation and pave the way to a two-state solution."

U.S. Representative Jamaal Bowman (D) from New York said he "fully support[s]" the proposed plan.

"We are a land of immigrants and we are a land of asylum-seekers," Bowman stated during a recent interview. "Anyone escaping persecution and oppression and violence, the United States has always been an open home to those people. So whether they're coming from Palestine, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Mexico, Haiti, they're coming here to contribute to our economy, which 99.9% of them are. We've always been a place to open our doors to immigrants coming here, so, yeah, fully support that."

"And also fully support amnesty for the migrants who have been here for quite some time," he added.

U.S. Senator Tim Scott (R) from South Carolina called the Biden administration's potential plan "hogwash."

"President Biden consistently undermines our national security with reckless decisions like this. We have no clue who is coming into our country, whether on our southern border or from war-torn regions run by terrorists," Scott wrote on X.

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