Thursday, March 27, 2008

Individuals residing in this country legally have been denied green cards because of ties to groups that include the following:

The Kurdistan Democratic Party, a political group allied with U.S. forces against Saddam Hussein. KDP leader Massoud Barzani now heads Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government, and the party's fighters are part of the Iraqi security forces.

The Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Party, which helped overthrow Emperor Haile Selassie in the 1970s but then broke with the communist leaders who ruled until elections in 1995. The party now forms part of a coalition that holds dozens of seats in parliament.

The Sudan People's Liberation Army, which fought a civil war with U.S. backing against the government until a 2005 peace accord, which the United States helped broker.

The National Islamic Front of Afghanistan, which aided the U.S.-backed mujaheddin groups fighting the Soviets in the 1980s. Its leaders now hold office in the Afghan government.