Evacuees fleeing the Taliban’s rule in Afghanistan have started to arrive in Maine.
According to the Portland Press Herald, one evacuee arrived Thursday at Portland International Jetport.
Evacuees at eight military bases in the United States are waiting to be resettled. Catholic Charities Maine, which is leading the state’s resettlement effort, says it anticipates another 11 arrivals within the next week.
Hanna DeAngelis with Catholic Charities Maine tells the paper that among the 12 new arrivals, there are four families, all with relatives living in Cumberland County. Three of the families will be living with relatives temporarily, while one larger family is being placed in temporary housing elsewhere, which has been secured.
The federal government’s Afghan Placement and Assistance Program has given Catholic Charities Maine approval to help resettle 67 to 100 Afghan evacuees in the state.
DeAngelis says those individuals are not technically considered refugees, but are being treated as immigration parolees. Parolee status is a provision of U.S. immigration law which allows those from overseas to stay in the country temporarily for emergency or humanitarian reasons.
