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STEVE KING. iov*» 2138 RAYBURN HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING
JOHN R CARTER Texas

JSSs'" BUWB^'N. T,nn«SSM WASH.NGTON. DC 2051 5-621 6

(202)225-3951
hnp. www.house.govjudiciary

March 19, 2003

The Honorable Tom Ridge

Secretary, Department of Homeland Security
Washington, D.C. 20528

Dear Secretary Ridge:

We are writing in strong support of your decision to detain asylum applicants from terrorist-
source countries as part of Operation Liberty Shield. In February, 2003, the Department of Justice
Inspector General issued a report titled the "Immigration and Naturalization Service's Removal of
Aliens Issued Final Orders" (Report Number 1-2003-004). In that report, the Inspector General
found that the INS removed only 13% of non-detained aliens with final removal orders. The
Inspector General examined three subgroups of non-detained aliens with final removal orders and
found:

only 6% of those from countries that the State Department identified as sponsors of terrorism
were removed; \y 3% of those denie

only 35% of those with criminal records were removed.

Meanwhile, the INS removed 92 percent of detained aliens ordered removed. These statistics, along
with a similar report issued by the Inspector General in 1996, show that detention is key to the
removal of deportable aliens, and especially aliens who make bogus or frivolous asylum claims,
That is why Congress enacted section 236 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, permitting the
Attorney General (now the Homeland Security Secretary) to detain aliens pending a removal decision
and requiring the detention of asylum seekers subject to expedited exclusion. Your policy will
ensure the removal of meritless asylum seekers from high-risk countries.

Significantly, the Inspector General was concerned with the low removal rate for asylum
seekers because this group has included terrorists who threaten our national security. The Inspector
General stated "We found that several individuals convicted of terrorist acts in the U.S. requested
asylum as a part of their efforts to stay in the country." A list of terrorists who have been released
from detention after applying for asylum is troubling:

Mir Aimal Kansi overstayed his visa, applied for asylum, and was then granted work
authorization by the INS. He killed two CIA employees at agency headquarters in 1993.
Secretary Ridge
March 19. 2003
Page Two

Ramzi Yousef was released from detention after making an asylum claim. While released,
he masterminded the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center.

Gazi Ibrahim was released from detention after being caught trying to enter illegally from
Canada. He applied for asylum (but later withdrew his application). He was arrested in 1997 for
plotting to bomb the Brooklyn subway system.

Other terrorists who have applied for asylum include Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman, Hesham Mohamed
Hedayet (L. A. Airport killer), Abdel Hakim Tizegha (millennium plot to blow up L. A. Airport), and
Ahmed Ajaj (1993 bombing of World Trade Center). The risk of releasing asylum claimants is
indeed high, especially when they are from high-risk countries.

In addition, it is essential that more effort is made to determine the validity of asylum claims.
In most asylum cases, the INS (now the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS))
and the Executive Office for Immigration Review decide asylum cases based only upon the
applicant's claim pf-£vents and generalized reports that support claims of persecution in their native
country. Rarely has the State Department or the former INS investigated an asylum claim in the
applicant's country to determine whether any individualized past or future persecution has occurred
or is likely to occur. Accordingly, asylum fraud has been easy to perpetrate. We hope the BCIS will
do better and we are open to requests for additional resources to investigate fraud.

Because of the sound policy reasons behind detaining aliens claiming asylum while their
identities and eligibility for relief are verified, we believe your decision is reasonable and prudent.
We would encourage you to implement this policy on a permanent basis, not just in this temporary
operation. In the meantime, please keep this Committee informed about your plans to implement
the detention of certainasylum applicants in this operation.

Sincerely,

F. JAMES SENSENBRENNER, JR. fN.HOSTETTLER

Chairmsnp, Committee on the Judiciary lairman, Subcommittee on Immigration,
Border Security, and Claims

cc: The Honorable Asa Hutchinson, Under Secretary, Border and Transportation Security,
Department of Homeland Security
Michael Garcia, Assistant Secretary-Designee, Bureau of Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security
Eduardo Aguirre, Jr., Director-Designee, Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services,
Department of Homeland Security
Robert Bonner, Assistant Secretary-Designee, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection,
Department of Homeland Security