The Biden administration announced Thursday that it will be moving to protect Lebanese nationals in the U.S. from deportation and allow them to obtain work permits, arguing that it can’t return them due to the conflict with Israel.
The Department of Homeland Security announced that it is designating Lebanon for Temporary Protected Status, which allows nationals who are living in the U.S. already to obtain work permits and be shielded from deportation. The designation is for 18 months and applies to any national in the U.S. on Wednesday or earlier.
TPS grants protection for nationals in countries found to be unsafe for them to be returned and is based on three grounds: armed ongoing conflict, environmental disasters or “extraordinary and temporary conditions.”
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Debris and damage surround the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
This designation is being announced due to “ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary and temporary conditions in Lebanon that prevent nationals of Lebanon from returning in safety.”
“Those approved for TPS will be able to remain in the country while the United States is in discussions to achieve a diplomatic resolution for lasting stability and security across the Israel-Lebanon border,” DHS said in a press release.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas speaks, Oct. 1, 2024, during a briefing at the White House. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Israel recently launched a ground invasion in Lebanon against Iran-backed Hezbollah, which has fired thousands of rockets into Israel. Israel began what it said were “limited, localized and targeted ground raids” in Lebanon on Oct. 1. Lebanon says more than 2,300 people have been killed in the past year and 77% of public schools are out of service, either because of their use as shelters or their location in areas impacted by the conflict.
The TPS designation builds upon a move by President Biden in July to grant Deferred Enforced Departure (DED), which delays deportations for 18 months, for certain Lebanese nationals in July. But TPS acts as an immigration benefit rather than just an act of executive authority by the president.
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DHS estimates that approximately 11,000 Lebanese nationals will be eligible for protection under DED or TPS.
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It is the latest use of TPS by the administration, which has proved controversial in some cases. Conservatives have been angered by the use of TPS to protect Haitian and Venezuelan nationals, who are allowed into the U.S. on parole via a separate Biden-era program.
Fox News’ Bill Melugin and The Associated Press contributed to this report.