Thousands of Iraqis arrive in U.S.

Nationwide program aims to resettle 12,000 refugees by end of September NEWARK, N.J. - Thousands of Iraqi refugees have arrived in the United States as part of a nationwide resettlement program to bring 12,000 Iraqis to the United States by the end of next month, officials said. About a quarter of the 9,000 Iraqi refugees already here arrived over the past month, according to a spokesman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR. Most come from secondary countries including Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Turkey. A resettlement program run by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden has received five Iraqi families in recent months — a total of 19 people — and more are expected, according to executive director Kevin Hickey. "It's picking up," he said. New Jersey — and the New York metropolitan area — are not... [read full story]