U.S. Resettlement Plan Stalled for Iraqis in Syria

Iraqis have to pass a rigorous face-to-face security interview with American officials. The interviewers, from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, are known as "circuit riders" because they have been traveling the refugee circuit — from Jordan to Turkey to Syria.

"It is a firm no certainly for the September circuit ride that was expected," said Arafat Jamal, who is with the U.N. Office for Refugees.

He confirms what Syrian and American officials have been saying for weeks: Syria is not granting entry to U.S. Homeland Security, at least for now.

"At the moment, there are about 3,000 people who have been processed by us and submitted to the United States. The fact that they won't even get to the second step of being interviewed is going to create, I think, some sort of pandemonium," adds Jamal.

So far, the pandemonium is mostly in the volume of e-mails. There are thousands of messages to U.N. officials every day from desperate Iraqis seeking information on their status.