BEDFORD, N.H. (AP) - The American Civil Liberties Union says a member of the U.S. Army from India has been granted citizenship after a lengthy delay.

Army Specialist Hiren Korat had enlisted in the Army three years ago as part of a program that was supposed to lead to expedited citizenship. But after two years of waiting, the ACLU filed a federal lawsuit in January to speed up the process. Korat was awarded citizenship Friday in Bedford.

The program, run through the Department of Defense, recruited immigrants who demonstrate critical language and medical skills as part of a path to citizenship. The program has been put on hold to new recruits amid concerns that immigrant recruits were not screened adequately, and security threats were slipping through the system.

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