A Jordanian man pleaded guilty this week to money laundering and stealing documents from the American government
The charges relate to a scheme that enabled some Iraqis to cheat in refugee applications to the US.
US authorities allege that Haitham Sad, 42, with an Iraqi man and Russian woman committed fraud to help the applicants pass a visa review procedure, the indictment said.
After finding out about the syndicate this month, the US stopped processing applications from Iraqis seeking refugee status for a period of 90 days.
The Justice Department said the US Citizenship and Immigration Service employed Mr Sad in Amman from 2007 to 2016.
He pleaded guilty before a District of Columbia court on Tuesday to several charges related to his role "in a scheme to defraud US refugee programmes", the Justice Department said.
"Sad pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal records and defraud the United States, conspiracy to launder money, and computer fraud and abuse before US District Court Judge Rudolph Contreras of the District of Columbia," the department said.
Last week the Justice Department charged Iraqi citizen Aws Abduljabbar – considered the mastermind of the operation – and Russian citizen Olesya Krasilova, as well as Mr Sad, with conspiracy to steal US government records.
They were also accused of defrauding the US, stealing US government records, and conspiracy to launder money.
Mr Abduljabbar had lived in Jordan since 2010 and once applied for refugee settlement in the US but was denied. Ms Krasilova held a similar position to Mr Sad at the US embassy in Moscow.
Mr Abduljabbar and Ms Krasilova are in their 40s.
“Abduljabbar was previously arrested and remains held without bond. Krasilova remains at large,” the statement said.
The Justice Department said that between 2016 and 2019 the three “conspired to steal US government records related to hundreds of US Refugee Admissions Programme applications”.
“Abduljabbar organised and led the conspiracy, and he relied on and paid Sad and Krasilova,” the statement said.
The indictment prompted the State Department to stop the Direct Access Programme for US-Affiliated Iraqis, which the applicants were using for refugee status. The freeze is valid for 90 days.
The US government set up the programme in 2008. It is designed to let Iraqis friendly to the US to apply for refugee status, without going through the United Nations.
The five pillars of Islam
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
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WOMAN AND CHILD
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
