Afghanistan Times
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KABUL – Afghans who fled their homeland after the Taliban’s return to power in 2021 are appealing to US President Donald Trump to reverse his recent suspension of the US Refugee Admissions Program (Usrap). Many say they risked their lives supporting US efforts and now face dire threats under Taliban rule.
An estimated 15,000 Afghans, stranded in Pakistan, await approval for resettlement through the US program designed to protect those endangered due to their work with US entities and rights organizations. However, the Trump administration has suspended Usrap for at least three months, citing the need for a review by the Department of Homeland Security.
In an open letter, the Afghan Usrap Refugees group urged President Trump to consider the severe risks they face, stating, “The Taliban regards us as traitors, and returning to Afghanistan would expose us to arrest, torture, or death.”
The suspension has left refugees in limbo, many enduring hardships in Pakistan, including arbitrary arrests and deportations. Hadisa Bibi, a former Kabul university student and women’s rights advocate, shared her fears, saying, “I’m confined to my room like a prisoner.”
Medical student Mahnoosh Monir, who fled Afghanistan after the Taliban banned women’s education, expressed despair: “Afghanistan is no longer a place for any girl or woman to survive.”
The United Nations estimates that the Taliban has deprived 1.4 million Afghan girls of schooling, making Afghanistan the only country to ban female secondary and higher education.
With resettlement flights for vetted refugees now canceled, Ahmad Shah, a member of the advocacy group, appealed for humanitarian reconsideration. “We seek the reversal of the ban on the refugee program on humanitarian grounds,” he said.
