US starts ‘ extreme vetting’ at Aussie detention centers

US Homeland Security officials have begun “extreme vetting” interviews at Australia’s offshore detention centers, two sources at the camps told Reuters on Tuesday, as Washington honors a refugee swap that US President Donald Trump had called “a dumb deal.”

The Trump administration said last month the agreement to offer refuge to up to 1,250 asylum seekers in the centers would progress on condition that refugees satisfied strict checks.

In exchange, Australia has pledged to take Central Ameri- can refugees from a center in Costa Rica, where the United States has expanded intake in recent years, under the deal struck with former president Barack Obama.

The first security interviews finished last week at Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island detention center, two refugees who went through the process told Reuters.

The refugees told Reuters that interviews began with an oath to God to tell the truth and then proceeded for as long as six hours, with in- depth questions on associates, family, friends and any interactions with the Islamic State militant group.

“They asked about why I fled my home, why I sought asylum in Australia,” said one refugee who declined to be named, fearing it could jeopardize his application for US resettlement.

The security interviews are the last stage of US consideration of applicants.

Manus Island is one of two Australian- operated detention centers, which hold nearly 1,300 people who were intercepted trying to reach Australia by boat.

Human rights groups have condemned the intercept policy and the harsh conditions of the camps. Australia says offshore processing is needed as a deterrent after thousands of people drowned at sea before the policy was introduced in 2013.

A decision on the fate of the first 70 people interviewed is expected to be reached within next month, a different source who works with refugees said.