Trump refugee embargo cancels hope for Afghan migrants

Islamabad, Jan. 27: After working for years alongside the United States to combat the Taliban in Afghanistan, Zahra says she was just days from being evacuated to America when President Donald Trump suspended refugee admissions.

She sold her belongings as she awaited a flight out of Pakistan, where she has been embroiled in a three-year process applying for a refugee scheme Trump froze in one of his first acts back in office.

"We stood with them for the past 20 years, all I want is for them to stand up for the promise they made," the 27-year-old former Afghanistan defence ministry worker told AFP from Islamabad.

"The only wish we have is to be safe and live where we can have peace and an ordinary human life," she said, sobbing down the phone and speaking under a pseudonym to protect her identity.

The 2021 withdrawal of US-led troops from Kabul ended two decades of war but began a new exodus, as Afghans clamoured to escape Taliban government curbs and fears of reprisal for working with Washington.

Trump's executive order to pause admissions for at least 90 days starting from January 27 has blocked around 10,000 Afghans approved for entry from starting new lives in the United States, according to non-profit AfghanEvac.

Tens of thousands more applications in process have also been frozen, the US-based organisation said.

"All sorts of people that stood up for the idea of America, now they're in danger," AfghanEvac chief Shawn VanDiver told AFP.

"We owe it to them to get them out."

Trump's order said "the United States lacks the ability to absorb large numbers of migrants, and in particular, refugees", and stopped the relocation scheme until it "aligns with the interests of the United States".(AFP)