LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, JANUARY 21, 2026 – International Institute of Los Angeles (IILA) expresses urgent concerns about the devastating impact of the Department of Homeland Security’s Operation PARRIS (Post-Admission Refugee Reverification and Integrity Strengthening) on refugee and immigrant communities in Minnesota, calling for immediate policy reassessment and protections for legally resettled families.

On January 9, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its agency US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) launched Operation PARRIS to re-examine thousands of lawfully admitted refugee cases through new background checks and intensive verification of refugee claims.

USCIS is focusing on 5,600 refugees in Minnesota who have yet to be granted green cards.  The agency has begun conducting new background checks, reinterviews and merit interviews of refugee claims.  Some cases have been referred to ICE.

Reports are unfolding of children missing school, parents afraid to go to work, and individuals avoiding necessary medical care out of fear of detention. Individuals and families are being surrounded in their homes by agents with guns drawn, seized, and moved to detention camps in other states while their cases are “re-reviewed”. Families are given no notice that their relatives are being moved, where they are detained, or how to contact them. These actions undermine not only decades of successful refugee resettlement and integration efforts but basic due process and human decency.

“What we’re witnessing in Minnesota is a humanitarian crisis that strikes at the heart of America’s promise to those fleeing persecution,” said Cambria Tortorelli, President and CEO of IILA. “Refugee families who have followed every rule, obeyed every request, and worked tirelessly to build new lives are now living in terror. This is not what our immigration system was designed to do, and it’s not who we are as a nation.”

Individuals and families with refugee status were intensely examined by the U.S. government through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program before entering the country and found to have been forced to flee their home country because of persecution, war, or violence. They were then given legal entry into the United States via a process that has been refined over decades by previous administrations. Refugees in Minnesota who went through one of the strictest vetting processes in the world are now being subject to the same inhumane immigration enforcement tactics as immigrants without lawful status.

Operation PARRIS has created widespread fear and instability among Minnesota’s refugee communities. Many of these refugees have spent years navigating the legal immigration system and contributing to their local economies. The operation has separated families, disrupted employment, and threatened the safety net that refugee families depend on to rebuild their lives.

“We cannot stand by while families who have already survived unimaginable trauma face yet another threat to their safety and stability,” Tortorelli added. “Policies that rely on fear as a tool do not make our communities safer. They weaken trust, isolate survivors of violence, and undo decades of successful integration work. IILA stands in solidarity with its partners in Minnesota and across the country and calls on federal and state leaders to reaffirm their commitment to refugee protection, due process, and humane immigration policies. We urge communities across the country to stand with refugee families during this critical time. We believe that the execution of Operation PARRIS in Minnesota is just the beginning and that this appalling approach will likely spread to Los Angeles and neighborhoods across the country if we don’t take action now.”

IILA continues to provide legal services, advocacy, and support to immigrant and refugee communities in the greater Los Angeles area. The organization is working with partners across the region to ensure local refugee families have access to legal representation and know their rights.