WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) sent a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Christopher Wray demanding a full accounting of the eight Tajikistani nationals who were allegedly released by the Biden administration and subsequently arrested by U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last week for alleged terrorist ties to ISIS.

These suspected terrorists allegedly passed through screening by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with clean criminal background checks. The Biden administration is currently releasing illegal immigrants from adversarial countries, including Russia, that do not give the U.S. access to pertinent criminal background check information. Earlier this month, the DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a report urging improvement to DHS screening and vetting procedures for those seeking entry into the U.S.

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Eight Tajikistani Nationals with Alleged Terrorist Ties Passed CBP Screening

“I write to express my deep concern about the threats to our national security posed by President Biden’s open border policies. These threats have never been more evident: recent reports indicate that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested eight Tajikistani nationals with alleged ties to terrorism. These individuals crossed our southern border illegally and were released into the United States, but—even more troubling—these suspected terrorists allegedly passed through screening by Customs and Border Protection with clean criminal background checks. Despite being ‘fully vetted’ by border officials, it has been revealed that these individuals have ties to ISIS. Given these disturbing revelations, Americans are rightly concerned about threats to our homeland.”

Biden Administration Has Refused to Take National Security Threats at the Border Seriously

“I have repeatedly urged this administration to take these national security threats seriously. Unfortunately, these pleas have fallen on deaf ears. Indeed, the arrests of these individuals are not surprising given the increase in terrorist apprehensions under this administration. Specifically, since President Biden took office, CBP has encountered 362 migrants on the terrorist watchlist, compared to just 11 under the Trump administration. Equally as concerning, we will never know how many of the nearly 1.6 million known ‘gotaways’ who evaded CBP detection during the first two years of the Biden administration were affiliated with terrorist groups.”

Americans Deserve to Feel Safe from Terrorist Threats

“The American people deserve to feel safe from terrorist threats within our country, but it is clear that this administration’s policies have made all of our communities less safe. At the very least, Americans deserve to know the full extent of the threat posed by these eight suspected terrorists who managed to gain entry into our country.”

Click here to view the full letter.