WASHINGTON – At least 50,000 Afghans are expected to be admitted to the United States after the fall of Kabul as part of a “lasting commitment” to help the people who helped the U.S. war effort and others people who are especially vulnerable under the Taliban government. national security said Friday.
Tens of thousands of Afghans have already achieved this through security checks and have arrived in the United States to begin the resettlement process. Exactly how many more will arrive and how long it will take for questions to remain open, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said as he sketched out the effort.
“Our commitment is lasting,” he told reporters. “It’s not just the next few weeks. We will not rest until we have reached the ultimate goal. “
Mayorkas and other Biden administration officials offer the most detailed look to the point of what began as a frantic and chaotic effort to evacuate U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and Afghans before the withdrawal of U.S. troops. on August 30 and the end of the longest war in the country.
Jack Markell, the former governor of Delaware, will be the coordinator of what the White House calls “Operation Allies Welcome.” It will work alongside the National Security Council, the Homeland Security Council, DHS and other federal agencies “to ensure that vulnerable Afghans who go through screening and review are resettled safely and efficiently here in the United States,” he said. Karine Jean-Pierre, the Deputy Press Secretary of the House. The appointment is expected to last until the end of the year.
About 130,000 were airlifted from Afghanistan in one of the largest mass evacuations in U.S. history. Many of these people are still in transit and are subject to security verification and control in other countries, including Germany, Spain, Kuwait and Qatar.
Mayorkas said there have been some evacuees who have been detained in transit countries because of the “derogatory information”, although he did not provide any details. It is unclear what happens to Afghans who do not go through the security check at overseas transit points, although the secretary said the US is working with its allies to address the issue.
So far more than 40,000 have arrived in the United States. Mayorkas said about 20% are U.S. citizens or permanent residents. The rest are people who have received or are in the process of receiving what is known as a special immigrant visa (for those who worked for the U.S. military or NATO as interpreters or with some other ability ) and Afghans considered especially vulnerable under Taliban rule, such as as journalists and employees of non-governmental organizations.
“We have a moral imperative to protect them, to support those who have supported this nation,” said Mayorkas, who as a child came to the United States as a refugee from Cuba with his family.
While he said the United States expected to admit at least 50,000 Afghans, he suggested there was no set limit or specific deadline.
“Our mission is not accomplished until we have safely evacuated all U.S. citizens who wish to leave Afghanistan or legal permanent residents, all those who have helped the United States in Afghanistan,” he said. “This effort will not end until we achieve this goal.”
Although the U.S. airlift has ended, Taliban officials have said they would allow people with valid travel papers to leave and may feel compelled not to back down as they try to continue receiving foreign aid and run the government. .
Most Afghans who have arrived in the United States are housed in military bases across the country, receive medical treatment, help with immigration applications, and other services designed to help them settle in the country.
There were more than 25,000 Afghan evacuees at eight bases with double capacity, said Air Force General Glen VanHerck, who heads the U.S. Northern Command.
Figures for each base are expected to fluctuate, but as of Friday, the approximate totals were: Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, 8,800; Fort Bliss, Texas, 6,200; Fort Lee, Virginia, 1,700; Joint Base McGuire – Ten – Lakehurst, 3,700; Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, 650; Quantico Marine Corps Base, Virginia, 800; Fort Pickett, Virginia, 3,650 and Atterbury Camp, Indiana, 65.
So far, few Afghans from the bases have tested positive for COVID-19 and there have been no security concerns, but VanHerck said the army has appointed an officer to act as “mayor” of emerging communities.
“I’m building eight small towns, we’re going to have challenges,” he told Pentagon reporters.
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Lolita C. Baldor, an Associated Press writer, contributed. Knickmeyer reported from Oklahoma City.