Refugees in Limbo: The Struggles of Afghans After the U.S. Withdrawal

Hamida has dedicated herself to establishing health clinics for women in Afghanistan’s rural regions and has also built a strong network of midwives. Meanwhile, Mohammad took on the critical role of guarding detainees for the U.S. Army. Hekmatullah’s brother was involved in various U.S. government initiatives, and Suhrab’s father served as a respected judge handling sensitive legal matters. Kheyal trained fieldworkers for an international aid organization. Following the chaotic U.S. military withdrawal in 2021, these individuals and their families fled to Pakistan, navigating a lengthy and complicated process to secure their status as refugees in the United States, with some even holding flight tickets to America.

Now, they find themselves in an uncertain situation.

One of President Donald Trump’s first actions after taking office was to impose a 90-day suspension on the Refugee Admissions Program. This halt effectively paused the processing of applications for those fleeing persecution seeking safety in the U.S. A refugee organization reported to TIME that over 500 flights carrying more than 1,000 vetted refugees from the region were canceled as a result.

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Following the implementation of the Executive Order, the Pakistani government, home to around 1.5 million Afghan refugees and asylum seekers (many of whom fled during the Soviet occupation), announced that Afghans unable to secure a new country had to leave Rawalpindi and Islamabad—cities where many had settled due to better access to the internet and aid services—by March 31. Failure to comply would result in repatriation.

Shawn VanDiver, the founder of AfghanEvac, a coalition of veterans and support organizations, noted that approximately 15,000 Afghan refugees in Pakistan had already been approved for travel. However, they are currently stuck in a precarious situation, unable to proceed or turn back. Their cases will remain unresolved until at least April 25, and potentially for an extended period. After the March 31 deadline, they will likely face increased hostility in Pakistan, while returning to Afghanistan offers only the prospect of poverty and danger. One refugee revealed he had been warned about “unknown armed men” targeting those who return. “The only armed men in Afghanistan are the Taliban,” he remarked.

TIME spoke with several individuals caught in this pause, many of whom requested anonymity due to fears of repercussions from either Afghan or Pakistani authorities.

Hamida was supposed to fly to Doha and then on to Pennsylvania with her husband and young child on February 3. However, on January 25, she received an email from her contact at the International Organization for Migration informing her that her flight had been canceled. She had left Afghanistan at her father-in-law’s urging, who cautioned her that her work with maternal health NGOs could jeopardize her family’s safety.

Now filled with fear about returning, Hamida is certain she wouldn’t last a week back home. “I know I won’t survive more than a week there,” she says. Currently living in a small, cramped one-room home, their lengthy 30-month visa process—which confirmed her refugee status—has depleted their savings. To avoid detection by Pakistani authorities, they keep their door locked and remain hidden for most of the day. Her husband has stopped taking labor jobs, their child seldom plays outside, and they only shop for groceries under the cover of night. Once a project manager overseeing a team of 60, Hamida now supports her family through tailoring at home. “We’ll try to survive here if we can,” she insists. “I don’t know what we will do, but going back to Afghanistan is not an option.”

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In a slightly better situation, Hekmatullah’s brother has been in the U.S. for a year on a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) designated for those who served alongside U.S. forces. He is able to provide some financial assistance to his brother. However, he is also facing challenges, as he had anticipated his brother’s arrival in Missouri on February 5, but was informed by his local refugee resettlement agency on January 25 that the trip had been canceled.

Now, Hekmatullah’s brother, who worked with various American NGOs during the war, is constantly moving between different rentals and friends’ homes to avoid capture and potential deportation back to Afghanistan. “The Pakistani government is actively searching for Afghan refugees to detain and send back,” Hekmatullah explains. “But going back to Afghanistan means imprisonment.” (The Pakistani embassy did not respond to inquiries.)

Kheyal’s family had completed all necessary paperwork, and their travel documents were requested in December. He, along with his wife and children, expected flight details any day. “Until January 20, we were genuinely hopeful,” he recalls. Now, they are relying on savings from his previous job, which he had left in anticipation of their move to the U.S. The Pakistani government has recently altered visa policies, now requiring monthly renewals instead of six-month extensions, each costing $200 plus various handling fees. Police frequently visit his apartment building.

Speaking with TIME at 3 a.m., Kheyal reports that no one in his household is sleeping. “When we found out the process was suspended, we lost our ability to sleep and eat,” he shares. “My children are depressed. They have access to social media and hear everything. I can’t keep anything hidden from them.” He hopes to endure the pause in Pakistan.

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Suhrab’s family cannot afford to wait any longer. His father, a judge, had to go into hiding after the Taliban regained power due to fear of retaliation from those he had previously sentenced. The family arrived in Pakistan in January 2022, their resettlement managed by Welcome Corps, a Biden-era initiative that allows groups of U.S. citizens—in this case, a church in East Tennessee—to sponsor refugees. Unfortunately, that program is currently on hold.

From the safety of the United States, Suhrab often takes on double shifts to support his family, and his brother, now outside the region, also sends money. The family and their church group are actively looking for another country willing to accept them, although very few nations are currently issuing visas to Afghan passport holders. “I’m terrified,” Suhrab confides during his lunch break. “What if they get caught and forced to leave Pakistan? I can’t imagine what will happen to them.”

The church group shares Suhrab’s concerns. “It surprises me that our American government is taking this stance, particularly against refugees,” remarks Melva McGinnis, who coordinates the Welcome Corps program at the church, which has previously assisted another Afghan family. “In the past, it seemed anyone could come in, whether legally or illegally. It’s unjust that those trying to enter the States responsibly are being barred.”

Trump’s decisions were not entirely surprising, given his earlier efforts to significantly reduce refugee admissions during his previous term, even before the COVID-19 restrictions came into play. Surveys indicate a broad spectrum of Americans across political lines support the acceptance of refugees, with even stronger approval for those from Afghanistan who were allied with U.S. forces. Under President Biden, the annual refugee admissions rose dramatically from a historic low of 11,400 in 2021 to over 100,000 in 2024—though the total during his term is still less than those admitted under President Carter (375,000) and President Reagan (660,000 over two terms).

Perhaps even more concerning is the situation faced by Afghan military personnel who served alongside U.S. forces. Mohammad, who was responsible for guarding detainees at a U.S. air base, has applied twice for entry into America. After waiting 18 months for his SIV, he also applied for a refugee visa, but his case was still pending when the three-month pause began. He, his wife, two brothers, and sister-in-law are currently living in a shack in a slum. “My situation is desperate,” he states. “We have no money for food or medicine.” They are limited to one meal a day, relying on the generosity of locals.

VanDiver from AfghanEvac is pushing for a bipartisan effort in Congress to create an exception for the already-approved refugees stranded in Pakistan or Afghanistan, which he estimates to be around 65,000 individuals, with 50,000 still within Afghanistan. “Our coalition represents a broad cross-section of America,” he explains. “Ninety percent of the American public supports this initiative. It’s a widely backed cause.”

Eric Lebo, a former Navy Reservist who served alongside Mohammad at the air base, underscores the importance of their contributions. “We couldn’t have accomplished our missions without him and his soldiers,” says Lebo, who now drives a truck in California. “There’s a lot of discussion about refugee and immigration issues, but people like Mohammad are soldiers who fought alongside U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Their lives are in jeopardy.”

Mohammad’s family remains in Afghanistan, and he recently shared a distressing photo of his brother, who was shot in the face. Mohammad believes that the attackers mistook his brother for him.