US lifts temporary protection for thousands of Afghans

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on May 12 that it will revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for some Afghans living in the United States, citing improvements in the security and economic situation in Afghanistan.

"We have reviewed the conditions in Afghanistan, together with our interagency partners, and they no longer meet the criteria to maintain temporary protected status (TPS)," said the statement from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

"The security situation in Afghanistan has improved and the economy is stabilizing, so these conditions no longer prevent Afghan citizens from returning home," she added.

Noem announced that the current temporary protection status for Afghanistan will expire on May 20, and the decision to terminate it will take effect on July 12.

TPS offers protection to foreign citizens who cannot return to their home country due to war, natural disasters, or other extraordinary circumstances.

The statement says that Noem assessed that "overall, there are significant improvements in the security situation and the economic situation in Afghanistan, to the extent that the return of Afghan citizens no longer poses a threat to their personal security due to armed conflict or exceptional and temporary conditions."

Noem is also quoted as saying that the decision to remove TPS is in the interest of US national security, as “DHS records show that some beneficiaries are under investigation for fraud and for threats to public and national security.”

According to the organization AfghanEvac, about 11,000 Afghans currently benefit from TPS protection in the US.

“This decision to end TPS for Afghanistan is not based on reality – it is based on politics,” said AfghanEvac head Shawn VanDiver.

"Afghanistan remains under Taliban control," he said in a statement. "There is no functioning asylum system. There continue to be killings, arbitrary arrests and ongoing human rights violations, particularly against women and ethnic minorities."

"What the administration did today is a betrayal of the people who risked their lives for America, built lives here, and believed in our promises," he concluded.

Former President Joe Biden extended TPS protections for citizens of several countries in January, while President Donald Trump has taken steps to remove this protection for other countries, including Haiti and Venezuela, as part of a tougher line on immigration.