Christian refugees may be trapped in Iran

WASHINGTON (BP)--A humanitarian program that gives persecuted religious minorities in Iran a safe avenue to flee the country may be canceled, if U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith, R.-Texas, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, maintains his opposition.

The program, which costs the United States nothing, is authorized by the "Lautenberg Amendment," a provision attached to the annual foreign affairs budget. The provision allows the Austrian embassy in Tehran to help the American embassy in Vienna process refugee applications from Iranian religious minorities, according to a May 24 article in The National Review....

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