By Ted Hesson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Biden administration will expand deportation relief and work permits to an estimated 309,000 Haitians in the country already, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said on Friday.
The administration will expand access to the Temporary Protected Status program to Haitians through February 2026 due to violence and security issues in Haiti that limits access to safety, health care, food and water, the department said. The expanded program will be available to Haitians in the U.S. on or before June 3.
About 264,000 Haitians in the U.S. were already covered by the program, according to the U.S. government.
U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat seeking another term in Nov. 5 elections, has walked a political tightrope when it comes to immigration, both trying to step up security at the U.S.-Mexico border and take a more humane approach to immigrants in the U.S. illegally.
In a presidential debate on Thursday, Biden’s Republican challenger, former President Donald Trump, criticized Biden for failing to stem high levels of illegal immigration.
Gang wars in Haiti have displaced over half a million people and nearly five million are facing severe food insecurity. Armed groups, which now control most of the capital, have formed a broad alliance while carrying out widespread killings, ransom kidnappings and sexual violence.
(Reporting by Ted Hesson)
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