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Abstract
Refugee populations are expanding — from 11.7 million in 2013 to 22.5 million today. Violent conflicts in the Middle East, Africa and elsewhere are driving refugees to neighboring countries and to Europe and the United States. Syrians constitute the world’s largest refugee population, with 5 million living in neighboring countries. As the number of refugees increases, so does controversy about how to help them. Federal courts blocked President Trump’s executive orders in January and March that sought to temporarily halt refugee resettlement in the United States, but the Supreme Court in July upheld the latest order. Members of the European Union, meanwhile, remain divided on resettlement plans, and countries failing to meet their commitments to take in refugees could face fines.