There are over 10,000 illegal immigrants in the United States from nations designated as terror sponsors, according to documents obtained by an immigration reform group.
The Immigration Reform Law Institute revealed Friday that it has received documents under the Freedom of Information Act that show that the illegals have either been ordered deported or have pending final orders of removal, but are still in the U.S.
The group, which focuses on immigration legal avenues, said that ICE said the illegals were here from Iran, Syria, Sudan, and North Korea.
IRLI said Iran “led the pack with over 6,000 or 61 percent of their citizens with removal orders followed by Syria with 20 percent, Sudan with 18 percent, and North Korea with less than a percent.”
The group said that Congress has raised concerns recently about “sleeper cells” in the U.S.
And they pointed to former acting ICE Director Thomas Homan, an immigration hardliner some say is in the running to be the next Homeland Security chief, offering, “My biggest concern isn’t how many terrorists have been arrested entering the country illegally, but how many got through? How many did Border Patrol not catch? That’s what Americans should be thinking about.”
The group’s executive director, Dale L. Wilcox, said the numbers are concerning.
“It’s simply unacceptable that we also have more than 10,000 aliens here from terrorist states that are sworn enemies of America. We saw on 9/11 the damage that only 19 sleeper cell terrorists could cause. This is just the latest example of the disaster of sanctuary laws, which force ICE agents to operate with one hand tied behind their backs while making our communities inherently more dangerous,” he said.
[Also read: Border surge pushes Pelosi and McConnell to seek long-elusive immigration deal]
