WASHINGTON, D.C. — The White House will offer deportation relief and work permits to an estimated 11,500 Lebanese nationals already in the U.S., due to conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, President Biden said in a memo on Friday.

The measure, under an authority known as Deferred Enforced Departure, will allow Lebanese nationals to remain in the U.S. for 18 months and could be renewed.

The announcement comes after Vice President Kamala Harris pressured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday to help reach a Gaza ceasefire deal that would ease the suffering of Palestinian civilians, striking a tougher tone than Biden. Harris has emerged as the likely Democratic presidential nominee after Biden ended his campaign on July 21.

Israel and Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a “support front” with Palestinians in Gaza shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel’s military invasion of the Gaza Strip.

Hezbollah is the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon.

U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell, a Democrat from Michigan, which is home to Lebanese Americans in Detroit and elsewhere, applauded the move and estimated it would cover 11,500 people.

“Michigan is home to many Lebanese Americans who continue to watch their families suffer as Lebanon faces an unprecedented economic, political, and financial disaster,” she said in a statement.

Former President Trump, a Republican seeking another term in the White House, has pledged mass deportations if reelected. His campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Key points:

• Beginning immediately, the U.S. will defer the removal of Lebanese nationals who were present in the United States as of July 26 for 18 months, except individuals who:
  • Have voluntarily returned to Lebanon after July 26.
  • Have not consistently resided in the United States since July 26.
  • Are inadmissible under the Immigration and Nationality Act.
  • Have been convicted of a felony or two or more misdemeanors in the U.S.
  • Are subject to extradition.
  • Are considered a danger to public safety or whose presence posed potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the U.S.
• President Biden’s memorandum also directs the secretary of Homeland Security to:
  • Take appropriate measures to authorize employment for deferred noncitizens for the duration of the deferral.
  • Consider suspending regulatory requirements with respect to F-1 nonimmigrant students who are Lebanese nationals.