The UN refugee agency said Monday it was "alarmed" by the consequences of US President Donald Trump's order barring refugee arrivals, describing those targeted as "anxious, confused and heartbroken."
"This week alone, over 800 refugees were set to make America their new home," the Geneva-based UNHCR said in a statement.
The order signed by Trump on Friday suspends arrivals by refugees in general for 120 days and Syrian refugees indefinitely.
"UNHCR
estimates that 20,000 refugees in precarious circumstances might have
been resettled to the United States during the 120 days covered by the
suspension," the statement added, basing that figure on averages over
the last 15 years.
"Refugees are anxious, confused
and heartbroken at this suspension," it further said, describing UNHCR
chief Filippo Grandi as "deeply worried" by the impact of Trump's move.
Refugees
who qualify for resettlement to the US or other developed countries
have typically endured extreme hardships and have no prospect of safely
returning to their home countries.
The US
president's widely-condemned executive order also bars entry for
travellers from seven mainly Muslim countries -- Iran, Iraq, Libya,
Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen -- for 90 days.
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