WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Syrian refugees fleeing the violence in the Middle East must not be granted entry in the United States, Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson was quoted as saying by media reports on Friday.
"To bring into this country groups infiltrated with jihadists makes no sense," Carson said, according to WBALTV 11. "Why would you do something like that?"
Hundreds of thousands of migrants from the Middle East, but primarily from Syria, have gone to Europe over the past several months, creating a massive humanitarian crisis. However, European Union member states, including Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia and Hungary, have closed their borders to refugees despite talks of resettling a certain number of migrants.
On September 20, Carson told NBC News’ Meet the Press he would not wish to see a Muslim president in the United States, unless such person abandoned adherence to Sharia law.
Later in the day, the White House said Carson’s remarks were inconsistent with the US Constitution.