According to a new report from the DOJ and DHS, three out of four individuals convicted of terrorism-related offenses were foreign-born.
Today, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a report, revealing that three out of every four, or 402, individuals convicted of international terrorism-related charges in U.S. federal courts between September 11, 2001, and December 31, 2016 were foreign-born. Over the same period, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement removed approximately 1,716 aliens with national security concerns. Further, in 2017 alone DHS had 2,554 encounters with individuals on the terrorist watch list (also known as the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Database) traveling to the United States.ÂÂ
The report reveals that at least 549 individuals were convicted of international terrorism-related charges in U.S. federal courts between September 11, 2001, and December 31, 2016. An analysis conducted by DHS determined that approximately 73 percent (402 of these 549 individuals) were foreign-born. Breaking down the 549 individuals by citizenship status at the time of their respective convictions reveals that:
254 were not U.S. citizens;
148 were foreign-born, naturalized and received U.S. citizenship; and,
147 were U.S. citizens by birth.
This shows us a few things. The first is that Terrorists are attempting to enter the US. In just 2017 alone we saw over 2,500 people on the terror watch list trying to enter the United States. The second is that foreign-born citizens and aliens are far more likely to be Terrorists. According to these stats, 254 people were not citizens of this county and another 148 were already naturalized and had received citizenship.  Only 147 were born in America and this data doesn’t talk about if their parents came here from a foreign country.
These numbers are very important to have. It shows us a need for strict vetting and making sure we continue to watch everyone that enters our country.
