Key points
- Afghan pilots’ lives are now on the line: US group
- US policy has turned more anti-migrant
- Going back to Afghanistan is not an option: pilot
ISLAMABAD: Afghan pilots who fought in the 20-year war against the Taliban in Afghanistan are in limbo after US President Donald Trump blocked their US resettlement plans.
During the US-led war against the Taliban, Afghan Air Force pilots played a key role alongside American counterparts, according to CNN. That coalition ended in August 2021, when foreign troops withdrew and Kabul fell to the Taliban.
CNN cited Shawn Vandiver, the founder of #AfghanEvac, a leading US coalition of resettlement and veterans’ groups as saying that “these pilots risked everything for America. Their lives are now on the line because of our failure to follow through on our promises.”
Tauheed Khan, one of the pilots is currently in Islamabad, waiting for resettlement in the US.
Uncertainty
He told CNN that now he finds himself in neighbouring Pakistan with his family, fearing that they could be killed if they return to Afghanistan.
These pilots risked everything for America. Their lives are now on the line because of our failure to follow through on our promises.” – Founder of #AfghanEvac Shawn Vandiver
In the past several weeks, the US policy has moved in a less predictable, more anti-migrant direction under Trump, throwing into doubt the prospects for Afghans such as Khan.
Tens of thousands of Afghans have already been caught in limbo due to other Trump administration executive orders suspending the US refugee admissions programme and the suspension of foreign aid funding for flights of Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders, according to US and Western media.
According to #AfghanEvac, at least 2,000 Afghans who had previously been approved to resettle in the US are currently in limbo.
And there are fears of a travel ban even bigger than the one the US president imposed during his previous term. Afghanistan could be among the countries affected.
Years of waiting
Khan said that he had been following the steps of the US Refugee Admissions Programme (USRAP) and, after two years of waiting, finally made it to the US embassy for an interview in April last year, with a view to resettling in the US.
Since then, Khan said, there has been “silence”.
The war, which started with the US invasion in 2001 after the September 11 attacks, devastated Afghanistan’s civilian population, which is still recovering.
