(JEWISH GROUP) HIAS shuts Vienna office that aided generations of refugees after Trump pulls funding
Since the end of World War II, Vienna has functioned as an Ellis Island for Jewish refugees from Europe and the Middle East, a place where survivors, dissidents and religious minorities arrived with little more than documents and hope, and departed toward new lives.
That role has come to an end: HIAS is shutting down its Vienna operations and laying off dozens of employees who worked there, following the Trump administration’s decision to halt the U.S. refugee program and terminate the federal grant that funded the Resettlement Support Center in Austria, which HIAS had operated for more than 25 years.
HIAS said the move has left more than 14,000 Iranian religious minorities — including hundreds of Jews and thousands of Baha’i, Christians, Zoroastrians and Sabean Mandaeans — stranded in Iran after having already been vetted and approved for resettlement in the United States. Several hundred Eritrean and other asylum seekers in Israel have also lost their pathway to resettlement following the closure.
“This decision leaves thousands of families in danger, with no pathway to safety,” Beth Oppenheim, HIAS’ chief executive officer, said in a statement.
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