© Reuters
In Monday's preliminary injunction, US District Judge Tanya Walter Pratt said the governor's directive "clearly discriminates against Syrian refugees based on their national origin," reported the Associated Press.
The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana on behalf Exodus Refugee Immigration, a nonprofit which helps resettle refugees in Indiana. The group sued Governor Mike Pence over his attempt to suspend resettlement of Syrian refugees in the state by cutting funding. The ACLU argued the governor's actions violated the United States Constitution and federal law.
"This ruling puts the brakes on Governor Pence's end run around the Constitution. No state can unilaterally ban a group of refugees that has been vetted and admitted by the federal government," said Judy Rabinovitz, deputy director of the ACLU's Immigrants' Rights Project, in a statement, according to WTTV. "By trying to block Syrian families based solely on their nationality, Indiana is flouting federal law, the U.S. Constitution, and our fundamental American values of providing refuge for families fleeing war and violence."
Comment: Fleeing war, destruction and violence caused by the U.S. and its proxy forces.
The state's Attorney General's office reviewed the decision, and said it means official must resume payments to nonprofit contractors which have been partially or temporarily suspended by Pence's November decision. Exodus is planning to settle nearly 200 Syrians in the state this year, according to the Associated Press.
Comment: The US is of the mindset that the outcome in Syria is "either/or," instead of what would cooperatively resolve the war and heal the country. This is the stumbling block that keeps the West actively pursuing fanatical outcomes at the expense of other nations. The truce shall set you free.