A key lawmaker questioned whether Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson did enough to stop the release of two self-admitted terrorists into the U.S., sending a letter Wednesday saying there was a “compelling national security interest” to keeping the two men bottled up.
Rep. Duncan Hunter, California Republican, in a letter to Mr. Johnson, said there are still too many unanswered questions about the four terrorists who were apprehended in September, two of whom are still being held, and two of whom were ordered released by a judge.
The release has caused somewhat of an international flap, since the two men who were released have fled to Canada, where they have requested asylum, according to Mr. Johnson.
Mr. Johnson says the men are part of the Kurdish Workers Party, or PKK. The men, however, told Border Patrol agents they were part of a Marxist group Revolutionary People’s Liberation Front/Party, known by the acronym DHKP/C. Both the U.S. and Canada list the PKK as a designated terrorist organization, while the U.S. also lists the DHKP/C.
In his letter, Mr. Hunter said Homeland Security officials had said all four men should be listed on terrorist watch lists, but said it was unclear if that happened.
“And given that you said it was not your preference to release the two individuals, did DHS initiate any type of legal appeal, challenging the judge’s ruling, due to the compelling national security interest involved? If no, what prevented DHS from doing so?” Mr. Hunter said.
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In his letter, Mr. Hunter said the four individuals were first identified by the Border Patrol as members of DHKP/C, but high-level terrorism investigators later concluded one was instead affiliated with the PKK. But the terrorism investigators went on to say they “suspect deception in the subject due to a desire to remain in the country.”
Mr. Hunter asked what the final Homeland Security determination was on the men’s affiliations.
On Tuesday, testifying to Congress, Mr. Johnson said the men “are or were a member of the Kurdish Workers Party” — though he questioned whether that group should be identified as a terrorist organization.
Asked if he’d asked Canada to send the men back to the U.S., he said avoids getting “involved in individual immigration cases.”
A U.S. Homeland Security official said they would respond directly to Mr. Hunter’s letter. The official did not respond to separate questions from The Washington Times, submitted Tuesday, about the process that allowed the men to be released.
But Canada’s immigration service released a statement saying that while it couldn’t comment on specific cases, anyone deemed to be involved with a terrorist group would not be eligible for asylum. The service also said that except in extraordinary cases, those who first enter the U.S. are required to make their asylum cases there, rather than in Canada.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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