US President NTonald Trump said he would help Afghans refugees held in the United Arab Emirates for years after they fled their country when the Taliban regained its control in 2021.
Donald Trump, who has promised to combat irregular migration, suspended the Refugee Reception Program when he took over his duties in January.
In April, his government also finished the deportation program for thousands of Afghans in the US.
“I will try to save them, starting immediately now,” the Republican president said in a post on Truth Social, as US officials reportedly were preparing to hand over some Afghan refugees to the Taliban. Reuters was unable to confirm information.
The UAE is a close US ally in the field of security and agreed in 2021 to temporarily house many thousands of Afghans who fled Kabul when the Taliban overthrew the Washington government at the final stage of US forces.
Nearly 200,000 Afghans were transferred to the US by the government of former President Joe Biden after the chaotic departure of Americans from Kabul. Canada agreed in 2022 to receive about 1,000 Afghans still held in the UAE at the request of the US.
It is not clear how many still remain in this Gulf country. Some countries have forced Afghan refugees to return to Afghanistan. Nearly 2 million people have returned from Iran and Pakistan in the last seven months, according to UN data. On Friday, Germany expelled 81 Afghan men.
In the US, Democrats urged Trump to restore the Afghan temporary protection program, noting that women and children in particular could suffer great damage under the Taliban governance.
Refugees include relatives of Afghan American military, children who have received green light to reunite with their parents, relatives of Afghans who have already been accepted in the US and tens of thousands of other people who worked with the US government during their 20 -year war.