Safe haven in jeopardy

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MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Up next, Afghan refugees in the US face deportation.

The Trump administration last week ended Temporary Protected Status, known as T-P-S, for thousands who fled the Taliban. That designation allowed them to stay in the US legally. The administration is also moving to shut down other parole programs that offered a lifeline to Afghan refugees.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Now, many Afghans who could face persecution back home may be forced to leave the US as soon as this summer.

WORLD reporter Josh Schumacher has the story.

JOSH SCHUMACHER: Nashinas is a 25-year-old Christian from Afghanistan who lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.

NASHINAS: I was in danger. I ran out of Afghanistan because of my life.

Nashinas spoke to WORLD under a pseudonym to protect the identities of his family members in the country. Before moving to Raleigh, Nashinas says he spent time in a Taliban prison because of his faith.

NASHINAS: They torture me physically. They beat me with the cables.

The guards at the prison made sure his stint behind bars was difficult.

NASHINAS: They beat me with their hands and feet, and they use electric shock, and they lock me inside of the cage and pour on me in cold water during the night time, and lock me in the cage from 10 to 6am at night, the weather was freezing and it was not good at all.

He says he was finally released from prison in early 2022. A few months later, he fled the country. Nashinas made his way to Brazil, and then eventually made his way to North Carolina in December 2023. He obtained a temporary visa and a work permit and began working construction, food delivery, and power washing.

But last month, the Trump administration told Nashinas he had seven days to leave the country. It said the humanitarian parole program that let him into the country had been revoked.

NASHINAS: If I go back to Afghanistan, it is like I am signing my suicide mission.

Nashinas is still in the country. But he and thousands of other Afghans—including hundreds of other Afghan Christians—may not be here for much longer.

The administration claims that conditions in Afghanistan have improved, and so temporary protection is no longer necessary. The Department of Homeland Security says Afghanistan’s GDP has increased by roughly 3 percent, armed conflict inside the country has decreased, and humanitarian support is improving.

There’s data behind each of those claims, but experts say they obscure facts on the ground. Global Refuge policy advisor Daniel Salazar says Afghanistan has made some gains, however:

SALAZAR: I think it pales into comparison to the flight of capital that occurred after the withdrawal of the U.S. and the NATO coalition.

He says claims about humanitarian improvements have less to do with quality of life, and more to do with a drop in the number of people in need of aid.

SALAZAR: Some of the data points are a little misplaced in the Federal Register notice it refers to an eased humanitarian situation because, only because 23.7 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, and that's down from 29 million the year before.

As for the administration’s claims about how conflict has abated:

SALAZAR: I think that's probably a reference to how there isn't, there isn't a a strong or like widespread resistance to the Taliban authorities in the form of an organized opposition. So you're not seeing like a full scale conflict…

But that doesn’t mean it’s safe for refugees to go back to Afghanistan. Many refugees were allies of U-S forces deployed to the region. Many are women and girls. And some are Christians. All of those labels mean they will face violence and oppression upon returning home.

The administration encourages Christians to apply for asylum. And many other Afghans might have a good argument for obtaining asylum as well. Shawn VanDiver is the president of the nonprofit advocacy group AfghanEvac.

VANDIVER: I mean, they should have a solid argument, right? It's not safe to go to Afghanistan. If they get sent back, they're dead.

Those seeking asylum in the United States should be safe from deportation while their applications are being reviewed. But VanDiver says it’s possible officials could deport them before the approval process is complete.

VANDIVER: I mean, the administration hasn't really followed all the rules, so we just don't, we don't know that they're gonna do the right—like, they deported people. They didn't, they weren't supposed to be allowed to.

I asked both DHS and the White House if Afghan Christians applying for asylum would be safe from deportation while their applications are reviewed. Neither responded.

Nashinas is currently working his way through the asylum process. He’s optimistic that he’ll get it.

NASHINAS: I know some people they…They were not in real threat or real danger in Afghanistan. They got approved their asylum. So if they get the asylum, get approved, why not me?

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher

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