This post has been updated.
Amidst a legal battle between the state of Texas and the federal government over refugee resettlement, two Syrian refugee families arrived in the state on Monday.
Lucy Carrigan, a spokeswoman for the International Rescue Committee (IRC), the nonprofit aid group that facilitated one the family’s arrival, told the Associated Press on Tuesday that the family had landed in Dallas on Monday.
“They seem very happy,” Carrigan told NBC. “And it was almost like breathing a sigh of relief that they have arrived. This has been a long journey for them, and it’s been a long journey for a lot of Syrian refugees.”
DFW International, an aid group that helped prepare for the family’s arrival had initially set up a press conference for the Syrian refugee family on Wednesday, but the IRC called off the briefing.
Carrigan told NBC that the family did not want to speak to the press but that they were not concerned about hostility toward refugees in the state.
“They would just say that they were very happy to be coming here,” she said.
The Associated Press also reported on Tuesday that a family of six from Syria arrived in Houston on Monday. Aaron Rippenkroeger, president and CEO of Refugee Services of Texas, the nonprofit that helped resettle the family, confirmed the family’s arrival in a statement to the AP. Rippenkroeger said that “due to safety and privacy concerns our organization can’t disclose resettlement details of Syrians or any refugees that have arrived in Houston.”
The Texas Health and Human Services filed a lawsuit against the federal government and the IRC earlier this month in an attempt to block Syrian refugees from resettling in the state. Texas officials claimed that they did not receive enough information about the families expected to arrive. However, the state withdrew its request for a temporary restraining order on the refugees arriving this week. The state will still pursue the lawsuit, but its legal argument is shaky.
