American authorities have reportedly tightened their criteria for reviewing applications for permanent residency, to the point that certain anti-Israeli statements on social media could now lead to a green card refusal. This is what an article from the New York Times claims, based on internal documents leaked within the Department of Homeland Security.
According to these documents, the agents responsible for reviewing the files have received new training materials asking them to reject candidates expressing opinions considered by the administration as “anti-American.” The measure would target individuals accused of supporting ideologies hostile to the United States, or groups and speeches linked to violent antisemitism.
The American newspaper indicates that, until now, ideological criteria existed but mainly focused on belonging to communist, totalitarian parties, or movements advocating for the overthrow of the US government. The new framework would significantly broaden this assessment.
Among the examples cited in the documents consulted by the newspaper are messages calling for “ending Israeli terror in Palestine”, maps replacing the name of Israel with “Palestine”, or publications demanding revenge against Israel in connection with the Gaza war.
Immigration agents would also be invited to pay particular attention to participation in pro-Palestinian and anti-Israeli demonstrations organized on American university campuses after the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, 2023, and the subsequent Gaza war.
At this stage, neither the Department of Homeland Security nor the American administration has officially confirmed the content of these directives reported by the New York Times.
