Cardin, Peters, Durbin Urge Biden Administration to Designate Lebanon for Temporary Protected Status

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, sent a letter to President Biden reiterating their request that the administration grant Temporary Protected Status to Lebanese nationals currently living in the United States. They also urged the Department of Homeland Security to swiftly issue implementation guidance for Deferred Enforced Departure for Lebanese nationals in the United States.

Full text of the letter can be found below.

Dear President Biden:

On June 5, 2024, we sent the attached letter requesting your administration designate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Lebanon in response to the regional conflict-driven crisis and growing domestic food insecurity, economic collapse, and a stalled Presidential selection process. We appreciate you taking the step to authorize Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) on July 26, 2024, for Lebanese nationals currently in the United States.

In the months since our request, the armed conflict between Hezbollah and Israel has only intensified, claiming the lives of civilians, and worsening the already dire humanitarian emergency. Lebanese as well as international agencies, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) report the displacement of more than one million people, internally. Since our last letter, the Department of State has updated its travel advisory to a Level 4: Do Not Travel, stating that "Lebanon's security environment has become even more volatile and unpredictable." The U.S. Embassy is providing crisis support and currently assisting those U.S. citizens and their families who wish to depart Lebanon given developments on the ground.

Given these worsening country conditions and the potential for continued crisis, we respectfully reiterate our request for your administration to designate TPS for Lebanon to protect Lebanese nationals currently in the United States. We also urge you to swiftly issue the DHS implementation guidance for DED and advance the DED authorization date, to protect Lebanese nationals that recently arrived to the United States.

Thank you for your consideration of this urgent request.

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