US to revoke legal protection for resettled Afghans
• Move by DHS exposes Afghans to deportation
• WFP unable to fulfil Afghanistan’s food needs amid aid cuts
WASHINGTON: The Trump administration will not renew the protected status of thousands of Afghans legally residing in the United States — a move that could expose them to deportation next month.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed on Friday that it will terminate the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Afghans — a designation that had allowed them to live and work legally in the country.
The decision would affect nearly 14,600 Afghans.
TPS is a legal protection granted to nationals from countries experiencing armed conflict, natural disasters, or other extraordinary conditions.
It shields them from deportation and allows lawful employment in the United States.
The Biden administration first designated TPS for Afghans in 2022. The status was extended in 2023.
However, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said on Friday that Secretary Kristi Noem — after reviewing updated assessments by immigration authorities and consulting with the State Department — had determined that Afghanistan “no longer meets the statutory requirements” for TPS.
The decision drew swift criticism from advocacy groups and veterans’ organisations that have supported Afghan allies of the US military.
Destination
It remained unclear where these Afghans would be sent in case of deportation, as the US does not recognise the Taliban-led government in Kabul and has no direct flights to Afghanistan.
In such a scenario, deportees are often returned to the country from where they last departed.
For many Afghans, that would be Pakistan, which is itself currently deporting undocumented Afghans.
Tens of thousands of Afghans had supported US forces during the war — including as interpreters and contractors. Many were resettled under the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) programme or through the US Refugee Admissions Program, but a significant number are still waiting for their immigration cases to be processed.
For them, TPS served as a temporary legal safeguard.
WFP cuts back assistance
The Afghans are now at risk of being sent back to Afghanistan, which is already grappling with humanitarian and economic crises.
Aid organisations working to mitigate the human catastrophe are under strain due to funding cuts.
The World Food Programme has warned it can support only half the people in need as fresh US cuts to food assistance risk worsening already widespread hunger in Afghanistan.
In an interview with AFP, WFP’s acting country director Mutinta Chimuka urged donors to step up to support Afghanistan, which faces the world’s second-largest humanitarian crisis.
A third of the population of 45 million people needs food assistance, with 3.1m people on the brink of famine, the UN says.
“With what resources we have now barely eight million people will get assistance across the year and that’s only if we get everything else that we are expecting from other donors,” Chimuka said.
The agency already has been “giving a half ration to stretch the resources that we have”, she added.
WFP, like other aid agencies, has been caught in the crosshairs of funding cuts by US President Donald Trump, who signed an executive order freezing all foreign aid for three months shortly after his inauguration in January.
Emergency food aid was meant to be exempt, but this week, WFP said the United States had announced it was cutting emergency food aid for 14 countries, including Afghanistan, amounting to “a death sentence for millions of people” if implemented.
Washington quickly backtracked on the cuts for six countries, but Afghanistan — run by Taliban authorities who fought US-led troops for decades — was not one of them.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, UNAMA, this week urged international donors to keep supporting Afghanistan, saying 22.9m needed assistance this year.
“If we want to help the Afghan people escape the vicious cycle of poverty and suffering, we must continue to have the means to address urgent needs while simultaneously laying the groundwork for long-term resilience and stability,” said Indrika Ratwatte, the UN’s resident and humanitarian coordinator in Afghanistan.
Published in Dawn, April 13th, 2025