President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend foreign aid has led to the suspension of flights for more than 40,000 Afghans approved for Special Immigrant Visas, leaving them at a higher risk of Taliban retaliation. The suspension, carried out as part of Trump’s 90-day review of foreign aid to match his “America First” policy, has also disrupted crucial US and international aid programs, such as nutrition, health, and vaccination programs.
The freeze in aid has resulted in a halt to funding resettlement programs for SIV holders by the State Department. These programs facilitate housing, schools, and jobs for Afghans in the US Advocacy groups and experts have slammed the suspension of the program as chaotic and against the interests of the Afghans who aided US forces during the 20-year war.
AfghanEvac” coalition, led by its head Shawn VanDiver, was concerned regarding the suspension; he believes this has been an unlikely action. Shawn VanDiver asked the administration to exempt aid from the freezing for SIV-approved Afghans. Shawn said, “They fought and bled along with us”; hence, “we have moral obligations toward our allies.”.
This suspension has left thousands of Afghans stranded in visa processing centers in Qatar and Albania or awaiting flights from Afghanistan and Pakistan. According to reports from the UN, the Taliban has targeted former government officials and soldiers, contradicting claims of a general amnesty.
Since the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021, almost 200,000 Afghans have been resettled in the US through SIVs or refugee programs. Still, Trump’s recent suspension of all refugee resettlement programs, signed just hours after his inauguration, has added fuel to the crisis. Some Afghan refugees the brother of a now-deceased US soldier, for example, or an uncle whose unaccompanied child sat in one seat while he stood precariously next to him are losing their seats on flights.
Neither the White House nor the State Department could be reached for comment on the matter, leaving advocates and affected Afghans uncertain about their future.
