During the U.S. military campaign in Afghanistan, more than 2,000 U.S. military personnel died—and alongside them, an uncounted number of Afghans who served in the American forces. Recruited as interpreters, medics, engineers, and other professionals, they risked their lives to accompany U.S. troops into the field.
In 2006, Congress first established the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program to enable Afghan and Iraqi individuals who had supported the U.S. mission in their respective countries to resettle in the United States. But between 2009 and 2021, only 37% of the 59,977 submitted applications for Afghans were approved, leaving many of our Afghan allies in limbo. As the U.S. planned its retreat from Afghanistan in the spring of 2021, the Taliban drafted lists of our allies to persecute.
Kabul fell on August 15, 2021, faster than expected. Unprepared, the United States hastily evacuated personnel, including Afghans who worked with us. The operation was the largest non-combatant airlift in history. Half of the Air Force’s fleet of 222 C-17 aircrafts were dedicated to the mission. Approximately 124,000 people, including 6,000 U.S. citizens, were evacuated. But despite the scale of the operation, many of our allies and their family members were left behind. There, they have faced systemic retribution by the Taliban—forced disappearance, torture, and killing.
Meena, an Afghan women’s rights activist who worked with the U.S. Special Operations Forces as a development specialist, spoke to the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) about her experience in the days leading up to the fall of Kabul. Despite qualifying for an SIV in the years prior, Meena remained in Afghanistan: she wanted to fight for her country.
That August, it became clear that staying was untenable. The Taliban already in Kabul, she and her sister brought their little dog with them to get supplies. At a checkpoint, the Taliban stopped them, suspicious of a woman driving a car with a little dog—both are contrary to their interpretation of Islam. Meena and her sister were beaten and stoned. Fearing further retribution because of her work with the United States, the family fled to Turkey. Last month, Meena arrived in the United States on an SIV after waiting years for the visa to be processed and approved. Due to freezes on foreign assistance implemented by the Administration in January, she had to self-sponsor her flight to the U.S.
Meena’s story is emblematic of the challenges faced by Afghans in the United States. Bureaucratic delays, a lack of legislative action, and the suspension of foreign assistance have all betrayed the promise we made to protect them.
Four years on from the fall of Kabul, and the Afghans airlifted out still have no direct pathway to long-term, permanent status. Rather than being processed as refugees, the majority were admitted as temporary humanitarian parolees, with no direct path to long-term, permanent status. To adjust their status, they have had to apply to existing permanent forms of immigration relief, such as asylum, an SIV, or family-based systems. While most of their claims are successful, the process can be long and frustrating.
This August, Congress reintroduced the Afghan Adjustment Act in the House and Senate, which would provide a direct pathway to a Green Card for evacuated Afghans. It would also increase the number of SIVs available, creating a pathway to safety for all of our allies still needing to flee.
The fourth anniversary of the fall of Kabul is a reminder to remember the sacrifices of our Afghan allies. We promised to protect and evacuate our allies: today, we have failed them. Tomorrow is an opportunity to stand beside those who stood with us.
