Pentagon Says It’s Not Purging Immigrant Recruits, Contrary to Reports

The Pentagon said Friday that contrary to what an Associated Press report has suggested, there are no new changes to a program for immigrants to gain U.S. citizenship through military service.

The Associated Press reported on Thursday evening that some “U.S. Army reservists and recruits who enlisted in the military with a promised path to citizenship are being abruptly discharged.”

However, the Pentagon said there have been no new policies or guideline changes to prompt any discharges from the program. Rather, any discharges are based on initial SECURITY screening of each candidate.

The Army could not comment on specific persons mentioned in the AP’s story due to privacy issues and pending litigation, but released a statement on Friday in response.

“Department of Defense and Army policy require all recruits to undergo a suitability review as part of the military accessions process. One aspect of the suitability review is a security screening,” Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Nina Hill said.

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