DESPERATE TO GO Anxious Afghans turn up in big crowds at Kabul airport hoping for a chance to leave their country as the Taliban returned to power and the United States decided to pull out its military, in this photo taken on Aug. 16, 2021. —Agence France-Presse

WASHINGTON, DC — President Donald Trump’s foreign aid pause has forced a suspension of flights for more than 40,000 Afghans approved for special US visas and at risk of Taliban retribution, a leading advocate and a United States official said on Saturday.

The stoppage was triggered by Trump’s order to halt foreign development aid for 90 days pending a review of efficiencies and consistency with his “America First” foreign policy.

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Experts and advocacy groups say the foreign aid pause has led to chaos in US and international aid operations and halted nutrition, health, vaccination and other programs. The order also triggered a suspension by the Department of State of funds for groups that help Afghans with special immigrant visas (SIVs) find housing, schools and jobs in the United States.

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READ: Afghans in PH leave for US with special visas

Trump promised an immigration crackdown during his victorious 2024 reelection campaign.

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Shawn VanDiver, head of #AfghanEvac, the main coalition of veterans and advocacy groups working with the US government to evacuate and resettle those SIV holders, said he does not believe that the flight suspension was intentional.

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“We think it was a mistake,” VanDiver said, adding that he hoped the administration would grant exemptions to the Afghans with SIVs because they worked for the US government during the 20-year war that ended when the last batch of American troops withdrew from Afghanistan in August 2021.

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“They fought alongside us. They bled alongside us,” said VanDiver, who pointed out that tens of thousands of other Afghans were waiting for SIV applications to be processed.

The White House and state department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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Reports by the United Nations’ mission in Afghanistan say the Taliban have detained, tortured and killed former soldiers and officials of the previous US-backed government. The Taliban issued a general amnesty for former troops and government officials and deny the allegations.

The flight suspension has stranded more than 40,000 Afghans, including SIV holders who have been waiting to fly to the United States from visa processing centers in Qatar and Albania, said VanDiver and the US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

That number also includes Afghans approved for SIVs who have been waiting in Afghanistan and Pakistan to be put on US-funded flights to the Doha and Tirana processing centers to receive their visas, they said.

Nearly 200,000 Afghans have been resettled in the United States on SIVs or as refugees since the chaotic 2021 US withdrawal.

In a separate executive order that he signed hours after his inauguration on Monday, Trump suspended all US refugee resettlement programs.

That order resulted in hundreds of Afghan refugees losing their seats on flights, including family members of active-duty Afghan-American military personnel, former Afghan soldiers and unaccompanied children.

PH hosted Afghans

The Philippines also hosted around 200 Afghans, around 60 percent of them minors, who arrived in Manila earlier this month while waiting for their SIV applications to be processed.

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They left the country between Jan. 15 and Jan. 17 on commercial flights, days ahead of Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 21 (Manila time).

Under an agreement between Washington and Manila signed in 2024, the US government provided all necessary services for the SIV applicants during their temporary stay in the Philippines—including food, housing, medical care, security and transportation—until their visas were processed.

The DA intends to run the TRO as “a specialized and dedicated office” to comply with the legal and administrative requirements and enhance its capacity to address trade remedy matters.

The Afghans stayed in a secure, undisclosed billet facility and were allowed to leave only once to attend their consular interview at the US Embassy in Manila.

The embassy had announced earlier that up to 300 Afghans were expected to participate in the visa processing program, but US Embassy spokesperson Kanishka Gangopadhyay said some dropped out due to medical issues or other considerations.

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“The government of the United States extends deep appreciation to the government of the Philippines for their cooperation and support for US efforts to assist Afghan special immigrantsla bet88,” Gangopadhyay said earlier. —with a report from Jane Bautista

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