Report: Majority of convicted terrorists were foreign-born

WASHINGTON—A Trump administration report released Tuesday says about 3 in 4 people convicted of terrorism in U.S. courts since 2001 were foreign-born. “This report is likely just the tip of the iceberg,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday. The report from the departments of Justice and Homeland Security reviewed U.S. federal court records between Sept. 11, 2001, and Dec. 31, 2016, for convictions on terrorism-related charges stemming from activity here and abroad. According to the data, there were 549 individuals convicted over that period, and 402 of them were born outside of the United States. Most people in that group were not U.S. citizens, but 148 were foreign-born and later became citizens and 147 were U.S. citizens by birth. The report is the first of its kind. “This report reveals an indisputable sobering reality—our immigration system has undermined our national security and public safety,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement. The White House released a statement on the report Tuesday morning saying it indicates the need to end chain migration—by which some immigrants can sponsor family members—and the visa lottery system. The lottery program grants 50,000 visas annually to add diversity to the U.S. immigrant population. The report did not provide specific evidence that immigrants coming to the United States through chain migration or the lottery program are more prone to terrorism.