The UK has landed its first plane carrying Afghan refugees from Pakistan. The flight, carrying 132 people, departed Islamabad Airport. Thousands of people who fled the Taliban after working with the UK government in Afghanistan have been waiting in Pakistan for relocation. The Afghan citizens resettlement scheme and Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy programmes are accommodating all the refugees on the flight.
Former translators for the British Army and teachers for the British Council are among those who have waited to be relocated. Charities have reported that some people have been waiting in Pakistan for over a year, and many of their visas have now expired. Pakistan had planned to deport illegal migrants from November 1st. Government figures show over 3,250 men, women, and children are living in guest houses and hotels in the Pakistani capital Islamabad, unable to work and with their children unable to attend school.
The Taliban declared an amnesty for people who worked with international forces after they retook control of Afghanistan in 2021. However, many Afghans reportedly fear reprisals and claim that they placed themselves in higher risk by following the UK’s instructions to leave Afghanistan. According to a risk assessment document revealed in court, the UK authorities in Pakistan now consider those awaiting UK visas in Pakistan “at risk of deportation”.
Documents released in court showed that many waited longer because Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stated that, in all but extreme cases, applicants could not be brought to the UK and accommodated in hotels. Instead, longer-term accommodation had to be found before they could be relocated. However, the government has made changes to its policy and has decided that those on relocation programmes will no longer be matched to “suitable accommodation” before they arrive
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