The federal government is currently caring for more than 100 Afghan children who arrived in the U.S. without their parents, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said on Wednesday.
, the Department of Health and Human Services said on Wednesday.
"We are working to ensure that Unaccompanied Afghan Minors who are referred to the Office of Refugee and Resettlement for processing, unification, or placement are placed with licensed care providers that are able to provide culturally and linguistically appropriate services or unified directly with a vetted sponsor, such as a family member who arrived with the minor," HHS said in a statement to CBS News.
A volunteer holds a child's hand as she helps Afghan refugees board a bus after arriving on a flight at Dulles International Airport in Chantilly, Virginia, on August 23, 2021. / Credit: OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images While "many" of the Afghan unaccompanied children are arriving with family members, the memo recognized that some may come truly alone and not have sponsors in the U.S. Those children could be placed in long-term foster care programs, according to the memo.
The vast majority of children in the refugee agency's care are Central American teenagers who crossed the U.S.-Mexico without their parents. Many of them have family members in the U.S. who can sponsor them and get them out of government custody. However, Afghan children are entering the U.S. under parole, a temporary legal tool that authorizes the entry of immigrants without visas on humanitarian grounds.
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