The US has taken in more Syrian refugees so far in this fiscal year than the past four combined, despite its focus on Ukraine as Washington sticks to a policy of increasing refugee admissions from around the world, the US embassy in Amman said.
Concern has been growing in Jordan that Ukraine's primacy among US and European donors would undermine help for 667,000 Syrian refugees in the kingdom. More than half of them are due next month to see sharp cuts to their food stipends.
The US has a main operation in Amman to process Syrian and other citizens seeking asylum in America.
The US embassy said Washington was “working to expand our capacity to identify, screen and admit qualified refugees", in line with an official goal set about a year ago to receive 125,000 refugees from around the world during this fiscal year.
“Russia's unjustified war against Ukraine has not altered this goal,” the embassy told The National.
The US fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30.
US President Joe Biden's administration has increased refugee admissions significantly compared with his predecessor Donald Trump, whose government set a cap on the annual number allowed to enter the US at 15,000 worldwide.
The embassy said the US Resettlement Support Centre in Amman "continues to expand its assistance to refugees" across the Middle East and referred to an even larger processing centre in Amman scheduled to open next year.
Washington is a major player in the geopolitical struggles Syria is undergoing, with about 900 US troops in the country.
They are stationed mainly in north-eastern areas controlled by Kurdish militia, a by-product of the fragmentation of Syria that followed the 2011 uprising against five decades of Assad family rule.
The US is also the largest contributor to the international humanitarian aid related to the Syrian conflict, donating $15 billion. A large proportion of those funds have helped Syrian refugees and countries hosting them.
The US has also received 23,364 Syrian refugees from fiscal year 2012 to fiscal year 2021, State Department data shows.
From October 2021 to July 2022 it received 3,795 Syrian refugees, compared with 1,246 for the whole of the 2021 fiscal year.
It is the highest number since fiscal year 2017, when the US took in 6,557 Syrian refugees, and more than the in past four years combined.
Most of the 6.8 million Syrian refugees worldwide are Arab Sunnis, who form the backbone of the opposition against President Bashar Al Assad.
The uprising started with peaceful demonstrations but was met by violent suppression by the regime.
One Syrian refugee in Amman, who has a wife and three children, said the US embassy contacted him this month to reactivate his family's dormant asylum file.
He had fled his home in the Damascus suburb of Douma to Jordan in 2013, before the town was gassed in August that year.
"The embassy scheduled another interview for October. It seems it is for further screening, although we were on the verge of being accepted to go to America four years ago," said the refugee.
After Turkey and Lebanon, Jordan has the most Syrian refugees. The World Food Programme last week said it would cut stipends to 353,000 refugees in the kingdom by one third to $21 or less, partly because of the needs to meet the effects of the Ukraine war.
The embassy said the US, which is by far the WFP's largest donor, would provide additional funding to the organisation to bolster its position in Jordan, which imports 80 per cent of its food.
"The unprovoked Russian war on Ukraine has driven significant increases in food commodity prices globally, severely straining food security in Jordan," the embassy said.
The biog
Place of birth: Kalba
Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren
Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken
Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah
Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
More on animal trafficking
IPL 2018 FINAL
Sunrisers Hyderabad 178-6 (20 ovs)
Chennai Super Kings 181-2 (18.3 ovs)
Chennai win by eight wickets
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Results
5pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: Nadhra, Fabrice Veron (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: AF Dars, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: AF Musannef, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: AF Taghzel, Malin Holmberg, Ernst Oertel
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: M’Y Yaromoon, Khalifa Al Neyadi, Jesus Rosales
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (PA) 1,400m; Winner: Hakeem, Jim Crowley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
UAE%20FIXTURES
%3Cp%3EWednesday%2019%20April%20%E2%80%93%20UAE%20v%20Kuwait%3Cbr%3EFriday%2021%20April%20%E2%80%93%20UAE%20v%20Hong%20Kong%3Cbr%3ESunday%2023%20April%20%E2%80%93%20UAE%20v%20Singapore%3Cbr%3EWednesday%2026%20April%20%E2%80%93%20UAE%20v%20Bahrain%3Cbr%3ESaturday%2029%20April%20%E2%80%93%20Semi-finals%3Cbr%3ESunday%2030%20April%20%E2%80%93%20Third%20position%20match%3Cbr%3EMonday%201%20May%20%E2%80%93%20Final%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How much of your income do you need to save?
The more you save, the sooner you can retire. Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.com, says if you save just 5 per cent of your salary, you can expect to work for another 66 years before you are able to retire without too large a drop in income.
In other words, you will not save enough to retire comfortably. If you save 15 per cent, you can forward to another 43 working years. Up that to 40 per cent of your income, and your remaining working life drops to just 22 years. (see table)
Obviously, this is only a rough guide. How much you save will depend on variables, not least your salary and how much you already have in your pension pot. But it shows what you need to do to achieve financial independence.
'The Predator'
Dir: Shane Black
Starring: Olivia Munn, Boyd Holbrook, Keegan-Michael Key
Two and a half stars
