KABUL, AFGHANISTAN — The UK government has ruled out resettling hundreds of Afghan refugees who were left stranded in Pakistan after US President Donald Trump’s suspension of all refugee flights into the United States.
More than 1,500 Afghan refugees, cleared for entry into the US, remain in limbo in Pakistan after fleeing the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021. Many of these refugees had worked closely with US forces or Western organizations during the two-decade conflict in Afghanistan, leaving them at risk of Taliban retribution if they return home.
In interviews with media outlets, Afghan refugees have pleaded with the UK to allow them to resettle.
“We are trapped,” Masood Jan, a refugee trapped in Rawalpindi told The Telegraph. “I cannot return to Afghanistan because the Taliban will kill me, and now the US has closed its doors. My only hope is the UK, where I pray we’ll be given a chance to start over.”
Jan is not alone. Many other refugees, such as Maissam Saee, who worked for the US Army Corps of Engineers in Kabul, have been granted special immigration visas but find their future uncertain due to the US flight ban.
Saee expressed his frustration over the UK’s stance: “We risked everything to support the West, and now we’re left with nothing. I hope the British government will not turn its back on us.”
The plight of these refugees is compounded by ongoing dangers in Pakistan, where they face the constant threat of detention and deportation back to Afghanistan.
In Pakistan, refugees are reportedly forced to pay bribes to avoid being detained and sent back to Afghanistan. “Pakistan doesn’t want us here, and Afghanistan is a death sentence. We have nowhere to go,” Jan said, describing a sense of abandonment after years of service to NATO forces.
The US resettled more than 180,000 Afghans following its chaotic withdrawal in August 2021, but thousands of refugees remain stuck, awaiting decisions on their resettlement applications.
Advocacy groups like #AfghanEvac, which has been working to bring Afghan allies to safety, have condemned the lack of action on their behalf.
Shawn VanDiver, president of #AfghanEvac, expressed deep concern over the situation: “It sends a message to our allies around the world that we’re with you until it’s inconvenient, or with you until our administration changes,” he said. “They need to be able to trust the word that our diplomats and our service members give to them.”
The crisis has also drawn warnings from international humanitarian organizations. Jan Egeland, secretary-general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, recently cautioned against mass expulsions of Afghan refugees.
As the situation continues to deteriorate, the refugees stranded in Pakistan remain in a precarious limbo, with few options for escape and no clear path to safety. Despite their service and sacrifices, the future of these Afghan refugees remains uncertain.
