Trudy Rubin: We’ve betrayed tens of thousands of Afghans who helped us and are under Taliban threat
By TRUDY RUBIN | Philadelphia Inquirer
June 19, 2022 at 4:34 a.m.
It has been almost one year since the ugly U.S. departure from Kabul. Yet tens of thousands of Afghans who were promised special immigrant visas (SIVs) — meant for those who worked for U.S. soldiers and civilians — remain trapped under terrifying Taliban rule.
Even for those eligible for SIVs, it could take years — if ever — to be issued one, given the glacial pace of the process. Hunted by name by the Taliban, many applicants may be dead or imprisoned long before their number comes up.
As the United States (rightly) rolls back bureaucratic red tape to welcome Ukrainians as temporary refugees, it is shameful to abandon those Afghans to whom we made promises.
“We left far too many behind,” I was told by Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., a veteran of the Iraq War who has been at the forefront of pushing for legislation to speed up the process. “It is taking far too long to save people who are depending on us.”
https://www.twincities.com/2022/06/19/trudy-rubin-weve-betrayed-tens-of-thousands-of-afghans-who-helped-us-and-are-under-taliban-threat/
