Afghans who fled their home country after the Taliban’s return to power in 2021 are pleading for the United States to reconsider a decision canceling all existing refugee resettlement efforts.
Reactions continued to pour in against an executive order Trump had signed two days prior, on his first day in office.
That order called for the suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), which processes refugees for resettlement in the country, starting on January 27. All applications and arrivals through the program have likewise been suspended.
However, the sudden halt to USRAP has left Afghan refugees — many already approved to enter the U.S. — in limbo, facing instability and the threat of violence.
Mahnoosh Monir, a former medical student and teacher at a language center in Afghanistan, fled to Pakistan after the Taliban shut down the school where she worked. Since taking power, the Taliban has severely restricted women’s rights, even banning their ability to speak in public.
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