Since 2011, millions of Syrians have been forced from their homes, where loyalists and rebels have been violently fighting for over four years.

According to the article, “Syria: The Story of the Conflict,” which was posted to the BBC website this year, “more than 250,000 Syrians have lost their lives in four-and-a-half years of armed conflict.”

The majority of refugees try to reach Europe by crossing Turkey and sailing to Greece in rubber dinghies or small wooden boats. The routes that the immigrants have to take are very hazardous, and the BBC reported on Nov. 9 that about 3,406 people have died in the Mediterranean Sea in 2015. The causes for these deaths are mostly overcrowding and the poor quality of their boats.

In an attempt to keep refugees from entering the EU, Hungary closed its border with Croatia on Oct. 16 this year and rushed to build a razor-wire fence in September to keep immigrants from coming into the country.

“They have an economic concern of jobs being taken and social services being overloaded,” Kevin Spritzer, history teacher, said.

According to CNN, Hungarian riot police used tear gas to turn people back at the border with Serbia.

While Hungary turned away thousands of migrants, Germany has granted asylum to over 44,000 refugees, and over 13,000 refugees have been granted asylum in Sweden. The acceptance of refugees into the United States has been a controversial topic.

“The refugees the U.S. takes in are among the most vulnerable in the Syrian conflict: many are women and their children, while others are religious minorities and victims of violence or torture,” according to The Guardian.

Due to the terrorist attacks in Paris on Friday, Nov. 13, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a refugee bill called the American SAFE (Security Against Foreign Enemies) Act of 2015 a week later.

This act would “require that supplemental certifications and background investigations be completed prior to the admission of certain aliens as refugees, and for other purposes,” according to the official website of the U.S. House of Representatives.

This means that new Syrian refugees would not be accepted into the United States unless the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and the Director of National Intelligence unanimously approve them.

A statement made by the White House said that “if the President [was] presented with H.R. 4038, he would veto the bill.”