An official from the United States told Reuters that flights for 1,660 Afghan refugees, including families of US military partners, have been halted by Trump’s orders. These flights were intended to bring Afghan refugees to the United States. The group also includes unaccompanied children waiting to reunite with their families. Additionally, Afghans who worked with the US-backed government and now face threats from the Taliban were part of this group.
The White House and the State Department, which manage US refugee programs, have not commented on the situation, according to Reuters. Shawn VanDiver, a veteran of the Afghan war and a member of an advocacy group for Afghan evacuations, expressed deep concern. “Afghans and advocates are panicking,” he said. VanDiver shared that his phone had been flooded with calls, forcing him to recharge it multiple times.
“We warned them this would happen, but they went ahead anyway. We hope they will reconsider,” he added, referring to interactions with Trump’s transition team. However, while Reuters quoted him confirming flight cancellations, VanDiver later clarified on social media platform X that the flights were not yet canceled.
Reuters reported that this decision has left thousands of Afghan refugees in limbo. These individuals had already received approval to resettle in the United States. However, they now face uncertainty as flights from Afghanistan and neighboring countries like Pakistan remain grounded. The list of affected passengers includes nearly 200 family members of Afghan-American military personnel. Some of these personnel were either born in the United States or became US citizens after serving in the military.
Trump, during his 2024 presidential campaign, emphasized a strong anti-immigration stance. This issue became a central promise in his campaign. Since the Taliban takeover, the Biden administration has relocated almost 200,000 Afghans to the United States. Despite these efforts, the recent decision has removed approved Afghan refugees from passenger lists for flights scheduled until April.
