Paris attacks: US states halt taking Syrian refugees

By BBC News

Several US governors have said they are putting on hold programmes to resettle Syrian refugees in their states.

Governor Rick Snyder of Michigan said he was suspending the acceptance of new refugees until a security review could be completed.
And leaders in Alabama, Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana have said they would oppose the settlement of any more.
The decisions come in the wake of the attacks in Paris which killed 129 people on Friday evening.
The militant group Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the killings.

Seven of the perpetrators died in the attacks, and one of them is thought to have been a Syrian who entered Europe via Greece with migrants.
Millions of Syrians have fled to neighbouring countries and to Europe, and the US has promised to take about 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next 12 months.

Image caption Nohemi Gonzalez, an American university student, was killed during the attacks

While the state of Alabama has not accepted any Syrian refugees so far, the southern state's governor has said that he "will not place Alabamians at even the slightest possible risk of an attack on our people".
In Michigan, where it has been reported that 200 Syrians have been resettled in the past year, Governor Snyder has said he will suspend the acceptance of new refugees until the US Department of Homeland Security "completes a full review of security clearances and procedures".
The decision to suspend the acceptance of refugees has drawn the ire of some working to resettle them.
"It's vital to keep in mind those who are refugees are fleeing persecution," said Michael Mitchell, with the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, an organization working to resettle refugees in the US.
Suspending refugees entrance, he said, "is only feeding into what the attackers want."

Image caption NFL players ran onto the field with American and French flags during a game over the weekend

The three top Democratic candidates running for president have said they want the US to take more than 10,000 Syrian refugees but only after extensive vetting.
Several Republicans have said it would be wrong to accept any more. Business mogul Donald Trump described it as "insane".
On Monday it was reported that a new video released by the so-called Islamic State celebrates the attacks and threatens Washington, DC.
Flags on many public buildings are flying at half-mast as an expression of solidarity with France.