About 18,000 people have applied for special immigrant visas in the United States that are still pending approval, according to a State Department official. But it is not clear how quickly they can go through the bureaucracy integrated into the program, given a thorough, lengthy examination that is often done before a visa is granted.
For many, this time could be a matter of life or death.
“Because of the high risk of Taliban and killing targets, the company I’m working with told me I shouldn’t go to my job for a short period of time. Instead, I am awake at night watching if anyone tries to plant a bomb around my house and my wife does the same during the day while I sleep, ”Khan said in a statement to CNN, shared through his lawyer Julie Kornfeld.
“I can’t go to the city to shop and be hospitalized to be treated. If I go there, I wear a turban, surgical mask and glasses to protect myself from the targets,” he added. CNN only uses its middle name for security concerns.
Khan has worked for two different U.S. companies hired by the Department of Defense in Afghanistan for more than six years and applied for a special immigrant visa (SIV) three years ago, according to Kornfeld.
“We hope the security situation will deteriorate rapidly for anyone who opposes the Taliban. It will certainly include translators and other U.S. government employees,” said Betsy Fisher, strategy director for the International Project. Refugee Assistance.
Thousands of Afghans, including U.S. military interpreters and contractors, have moved to the United States on visas. The average time to process visas is a hard and long process; in recent years, the processing of each approved applicant has taken more than 500 days, according to State Department data reviewed by CNN.
Abdul, an Afghan national, fled his country for fear of being killed because he worked as a U.S. government engineer in Afghanistan.
“I left everything,” he told CNN’s Jake Tapper. “I left my family and colleagues and it was very painful for me.”
Abdul asked CNN to call him by an alias to protect his identity because he says his life is in danger from insurgents who fear he will still be persecuted.
“Eyes and ears”
The U.S. diplomatic mission in Afghanistan would be impossible without local partners and translators, U.S. diplomats say.
“They are our eyes and ears. They have all the contacts that benefit us. They organize meetings and get to know the power corridors,” said a U.S. diplomat who recently served in Afghanistan. “They are also our continuity because the annual turnover of American diplomats is about 90%.”
Many of the translators have family members who also care about them, U.S. diplomats told CNN. It is fear for their family that has led some of them to finally show up to a show they hoped they would never have to use.
“These are resilient and determined people. They thought peace would come, so they didn’t think they should go to the US. Now, with the possible return of the Taliban, they have no choice,” he said. American diplomat.
A State Department spokesman said he was well aware of the risks to translators and others.
“Everyone involved in this process, whether in Washington or at our embassies abroad, is fully aware of the contributions of our Afghan colleagues and the risks they face. As the Secretary (Antony) said Blinken, we have a commitment to those who worked with us and helped us, whether they were our military or our diplomats, and we are committed to moving forward on the special immigrant visa program for them, ”the spokesman said. .
Serious delays
There were “hundreds and hundreds of visas” that expired, because no one could leave the country to come to the United States, according to Lindsey Sharp with the International Rescue Committee. The embassy in Afghanistan has “finally” resumed processing and reissued expired visas, Sharp said, but capacity is still limited.
“Covid, over the last year, has suspended some sort of ground emission,” he said. “Now the delays are big.”
The State Department says they have now increased resources and taken steps to prioritize requests from interpreters and translators, with additional consideration for those who helped in combat operations, according to the spokesman. These efforts include a temporary increase in the consular staff at the U.S. embassy in Kabul to help with visas.
“Ever since people heard this news that the U.S. was withdrawing from Afghanistan, I get hundreds of messages, such as messages from Facebook, from my friends, from other people doing interpreter or translator or contractors in Iraq, or Afghanistan, ”he said. dit. “People are asking for help.”
Shinwari has had a hard time keeping up with the messages due to the constant flow: “What am I telling them?” He said.
While working as an interpreter in Afghanistan, Shinwari lived on the American base, not just to work, but as protection, he explained. Without that, I would be at risk.
“These performers are the breadwinner of a big family,” he said. “If the breadwinner dies, the whole family dies.”
Concern of legislators and others
“Our troops are returning home with the honor they deserve, but if we leave behind to kill those who facilitated our mission, the honor of our nation will be indelibly tarnished,” they wrote in the letter, obtained by CNN.
Members of Congress have also shared their concerns about the future of those who have helped the U.S. mission in Afghanistan.
On Wednesday, a bipartisan group of 16 House lawmakers, including several who have campaigned in the U.S. military and the State Department, sent a letter to the president urging the administration to commit to the Afghan people who helped the United States on the ground.
“We need to provide a path to security for those who worked loyally alongside U.S. troops, diplomats and contractors, and work with our international partners to provide options to Afghans who would face a credible fear of persecution if the Taliban would return to power, “he wrote. Democratic Representatives: Jason Crow, Ami Bera, Earl Blumenauer, Jared Golden, Sara Jacobs, Andy Kim, Tom Malinowski, Seth Moulton, Stephanie Murphy and Adam Schiff and Republican Representatives: Don Bacon, Neal Dunn, Adam Kinzinger, Peter Meijer, Michael Waltz and Brad Wenstrup.
“This effort is advancing our vital national security interests by demonstrating to the world how we treat our partners,” said lawmakers, who announced that they would form the “Working Group to Honor Our Promises” focused on drafting legislation to expand and accelerate SIV Program and coordinate with administration.
Florida Republican Representative Mike Waltz, who served in Afghanistan as a Special Forces officer, said he felt Afghans, many of whom have worked with the United States for years, “in a state of panic.” .
“I had an performer run while I was in line waiting for an SIV visa, along with several of his cousins and siblings. So they’re really taking the lives of their entire extended family in their hands and now they’re just abandoned. back then, we know, whenever we need it after leaving our local partners, it’s a lie, it’s just not true, ”Waltz added.
Blumenauer, an Oregon Democrat and longtime SIV advocate, told CNN he plans to share his concerns with the administration.
“I personally feel sorry for them and I will let them know that I hope one of the unintended consequences is not to put at risk people who literally risked their lives to help Americans, such as translators, truck drivers … We have an obligation to get it right, ”he said.
Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, also a longtime supporter of the SIV program, said in a statement that she was “discouraged by the president’s decision, which I believe not only risks hard gains in Afghanistan, but also it also puts Afghans at risk who have been critical partners in supporting the US. “
This story has been updated with a letter from retired U.S. Army General David Petraeus and former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker.