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4. Border and Enforcement News:   ICE Offers Relief to Libyan Students in U.S.   The Washington Post reports that ICE has announced that Libyan students in the U.S. who have suffered economic hardship because of the unrest in their home country will be allowed to work more hours and reduce their course load.  The United States has previously extended similar considerations, known as temporary protected status, to citizens of countries that are undergoing crises.  The relief for Libyan students is slated to end Dec. 31.   http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/ice-offers-relief-to-libyan-students-in-us/2011/06/09/AGyYQwNH_story.html ******   Corruption a Problem at Customs and Border Protection, Agency Head Says   The Hill (DC) reports that more than 125 U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees have been arrested or indicted on corruption charges for drug smuggling, human trafficking, laundering money, and conspiracy since 2004, according to the agency’s top official.  The spike in incidents coincides with a drastic increase in the agency’s manpower in an effort to curb the flow of money, drugs, and illegally present immigrants across the border.  In an effort to stem the corruption, Congress passed the Anti-Border Corruption Act of 2010 which calls for the eventual polygraphing of all interviewees and current agents- the agency reports that each year it moves closer and closer to this goal.   http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/165925-corruption-a-problem-at-customs-and-border-protection-agency-head-says ******   Study: Foreign Visitors with Expired Visas Pose Potential Terrorist Threat   The Houston Chronicle reports that a decade after five suicide hijackers with expired U.S. visas helped perpetrate 9/11 the Department of Homeland Security still lacks a failsafe way to track foreign visitors in and out of the country.  Congress’ investigative Government Accountability Office found that the lack of fraud-proof biometrics such as digital fingerprints leaves the nation exposed to terrorist threats.  The budget cost and limits to available manpower remain the prohibitive factors preventing the DHS from being able to quickly match digital records of arriving visitors with the paper records of departing visitors. http://blog.chron.com/txpotomac/2011/06/foreign-visitors-with-expired-visas-pose-potential-terrorist-threat/ ******      Obama Administration Extends National Guard Deployment at Southwest Border   The Los Angeles Times reports that the Obama administration has extended the deployment of National Guard troops along the southwest border for an additional three months.  The National Guardsmen will continue their deployment through September in an effort to keep pressure on border crossings while the DHS rolls out more personnel, fences and sensors.    http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jun/17/news/la-pn-national-guard-border-20110617 ****** ICE Auditing Company Hiring Records for Violations   The Associated Press reports that Federal immigration authorities are beginning a new round of investigations to make sure businesses hire only people authorized to work in the U.S.  The investigation will focus on 1,000 companies vital to national security and other government and economic functions, inspecting I-9 forms to ensure all workers are eligible to work in the U.S. The Obama administration has made cracking down on employers a key part of its immigration enforcement policy, hoping to encourage a “culture of voluntary compliance.”  In the most serious cases, violations can result in criminal arrests of employers.   http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110615/ap_on_re_us/us_immigration_employer_crackdown ******   ICE Acknowledges Detaining U.S. Citizen in Miami-Dade   The Miami Herald reports that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has accepted responsibility for detaining Christopher Zambrano, a U.S. citizen born in Atlanta, as he rode his bicycle early one morning earlier this month. The case drew attention because Zambrano said the men in black clothes who stopped him questioned him about his immigration status.   An ICE spokesperson insisted that the agents focused on whether he had identification.  Immigrant-rights activists say immigration agents are targeting Hispanics in the belief that they are more likely than non-Hispanics to be foreign nationals. ICE officials insist the operation that ensnared Zambrano had nothing to do with immigration enforcement but with efforts to detect criminal activity at marinas such as drug and human trafficking.    http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/06/22/2279810/ics-acknowledges-detaining-us.html#disqus_thread ******   Justice Department Accuses Smithfield Unit of Immigrant Bias   The Wall Street Journal reports that the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against a Smithfield Foods Inc. unit, alleging the company, Farmfield Foods Inc., imposed unnecessary documentary requirements on non-U.S. citizens when establishing their authorization to work in the country.  The department’s investigation found that the company required all newly hired non-U.S citizens and some foreign-born U.S. citizens to present specific and, in some cases, extra work-authorization documents beyond those required by federal law.    http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304447804576412444123632046.html?mod=googlenews_wsj ******   U.S.: Some non-Mariel Cubans Can be Deported   The Miami Herald reports that Cubans convicted of crimes in the United States have been deported to their homeland because their names appear on a 27-year-old repatriation agreement list.  The list is the result of U.S. pressures on Cuba to take back immigrants who arrived in the 1980 Mariel boatlift on the grounds that they were criminals.  An ICE spokeswoman confirmed the 1984 list includes some who did not arrive during the 1980 boatlift.  The disclosure came as a surprise to immigration attorneys and activists who believed it contained only the names of Mariel Cubans.   http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/06/28/2290259/us-some-non-mariel-cubans-can.html ******   ‘Notario público’ Scam Artists Continue to Target Immigrant Community   The Monitor (McAllen, TX) reports that a district judge last month ordered two more notarios públicos to cease their operations, pay back their victims and publicly display signs in English and Spanish saying they cannot legally offer immigration legal counseling.  The pair of notary publics are among at least eight such operations shut down by the Attorney General’s Office this year.  At a press conference, Attorney General Greg Abbott noted the growing problem of notary publics targeting Texas’ large Hispanic and Spanish-speaking communities for immigration counseling scams.    http://www.themonitor.com/news/p%C3%BAblico-52579-community-scam.html ******   US: Israel Included in Terror Watch List by Mistake   Ynetnews reports that Israeli diplomats stationed in the United States were surprised to discover that Israel was one of 36 countries included in a new Homeland Security terror watch list.  John Morton, director of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement division of the DHS, said Israel’s appearance on the list was a mistake based on inaccurate information.  Morton went further, stating “the US does not and never has considered Israel to have links to terrorism…”   http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4092186,00.html ******

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