Speaking to reporters Tuesday, State Department Deputy Spokeswoman Jen Psaki would not confirm if passports belonging to Americans confirmed to be fighting with ISIS/ISIL in the Middle East have been revoked.
"It's not as black and white as that," Psaki said, adding that there are legal parameters the State Department must work around on a case-by-case basis. "We [State Department] can revoke passports for a number of reasons."
Government officials, intelligence agents and Americans have been concerned for weeks about ISIS fighters, who have now sent two messages directly to America with the beheadings of journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, will easily use U.S. passports to get back into the country to carry out attacks.
Just yesterday Saudi Arabia King Abdullah warned ISIS could reach Europe and the United States within two months.A senior regional diplomat told the Daily Mail last week, "The Islamic State is now the most capable military power in the Middle East outside Israel."
Meanwhile, the State Department and Homeland Security have lost track of 6,000 students inside the U.S. on expired student visas.
Parting thought:
So we can drone Americans fighting with terrorists but we can't automatically revoke their U.S. passports? WTH.
— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) September 2, 2014