Biden grants deportation reprieve to Lebanese nationals already in US, citing Israel-Hezbollah conflict

The White House will offer deportation relief and work permits to an estimated 11,500 Lebanese nationals already in the United States, due to conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, US President Joe Biden announces in a memo.

The measure, under an authority known as Deferred Enforced Departure, will allow Lebanese nationals to remain in the US for 18 months and could be renewed.

Since October 8, Hezbollah-led forces have attacked Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a near-daily basis, with the group saying it is doing so to support Gaza amid the war there.

So far, the skirmishes have resulted in 12 civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of 18 IDF soldiers and reservists. There have also been several attacks from Syria, without any injuries.

Hezbollah has named 377 members who have been killed by Israel during the ongoing skirmishes, mostly in Lebanon but some also in Syria. In Lebanon, another 68 operatives from other terror groups, a Lebanese soldier, and dozens of civilians have been killed.

Tens of thousands have been evacuated from both sides of the border.

US Representative Debbie Dingell, a Democrat from Michigan, home to Lebanese Americans in Detroit and elsewhere, applauds the move.

“Michigan is home to many Lebanese Americans who continue to watch their families suffer as Lebanon faces an unprecedented economic, political, and financial disaster,” she says in a statement.

Former US president Donald Trump, a Republican seeking another term in the White House, has pledged mass deportations if reelected. His campaign does not immediately respond to a request for comment.