California IN BRIEF : SAN FRANCISCO : Settlement OKd in Immigration Suit

A judge gave final approval to a settlement that blocks deportation of as many as 500,000 refugees from war-torn El Salvador and Guatemala and allows them to reopen their cases seeking political asylum. The Bush Administration and refugee groups agreed in December to resolve a suit filed in 1985 that accused the federal government of denying asylum on the basis of improper political considerations. The Immigration and Naturalization Service will reconsider an estimated 150,000 cases of refugees whose claims were denied since 1980 but who have not yet been deported. Another 350,000 who did not seek asylum because they feared they would be deported will also be allowed to apply.