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Afghan refugees in the United States will be allowed to stay for at least 18 months under temporary protected status, the government said Wednesday, a move that will help some of the thousands who arrived following the chaotic American withdrawal from their country.
The Afghans must already be in the U.S. and pass a background check to qualify for the program, which is intended to help thousands who were evacuated to the U.S. under a short-term status known as humanitarian parole as their country fell to the Taliban.
BIDEN ADMIN GIVES TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS TO TENS OF THOUSANDS OF AFGHAN EVACUEES
For many, however, time is running out because they have not yet received permanent residency through backlogged programs such as the special immigrant visa, which is issued to people who worked as interpreters or in some other capacity for the U.S. and its allies during the 20-year war.
In the meantime, their country has spiraled into a deep economic crisis under Taliban rule, and millions of them are at risk of starvation.
“This TPS designation will help to protect Afghan nationals who have already been living in the United States from returning to unsafe conditions,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement announcing the move.
Families evacuated from Kabul, Afghanistan, arrive at Washington Dulles International Airport, in Chantilly, Virginia, on Aug. 27, 2021.
(AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
More than 76,000 Afghans were admitted to the U.S. following the U.S. withdrawal in August. Homeland Security has said that about 40% will eventually qualify for a special immigrant visa, a lengthy and complex process that ultimately provides permanent legal residency and a path to citizenship.
Most have now settled in communities around the U.S., with the largest numbers moving to the Northern Virginia-Washington, D.C., area; Northern California; and Texas.
Refugee advocates have…
Source : foxnews
