FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 1, 2022

PRESS CONTACT

Joseph Azam | joseph@afghanamericans.org

AAF Responds to Federal Judge Rejecting Biden Admin Attempt to Seek Release from SIV Program Oversight and Obligations

(Washington, DC) – Yesterday D.C. federal district Judge Tanya Chutkan issued an order rejecting the Biden administration’s attempt to be relieved of its court-ordered and congressionally mandated obligations surrounding the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program for Iraqis and Afghans. The case, Allies v. Blinken, was originally filed by the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) to challenge unreasonable delays in the SIV process for Afghan and Iraqi applicants and has spanned multiple administrations. The Afghan-American Foundation filed an amicus brief in the case on behalf of Afghan SIV applicants in July 2022 and attended oral arguments in the case in September 2022.

While the Court was generous to the government in being sympathetic to the its arguments about the increased difficulties of processing SIVs and is allowing them to revise the plan, we are glad to see that it found the continued need for judicial oversight of SIV processing given the history of government delays and failures in meeting the program’s mandates. We look forward to seeing the revised plan and take comfort in the fact that it will be developed with input and oversight from the expert team at IRAP.

We are grateful for the years of work IRAP has put into this critical litigation and for the incredibly compelling and impactful work of the other amici in the case, the Association of Wartime Allies and Veterans for American Ideals. This opinion ensures that SIV applicants will have the benefit of judicial oversight of the SIV program until such time that the government demonstrates an ability to meet the requirements established for the program by Congress and thus far enforced by the Court out of necessity.

“Today’s ruling is a win for Iraqi and Afghan SIV applicants, many of whom remain in harm’s way and have lingered for years waiting for the United States to fulfill its promises to them. It’s a step in the right direction but we have a long way to go in ensuring that the SIV program functions with the efficiency and efficacy intended by Congress when it created this important pathway to safety for America’s allies” said Joseph Azam, Board Chair of the Afghan-American Foundation, “we will continue to stay engaged on behalf of Afghans for as long as it takes to get this right.”

The Afghan-American Foundation is a national 501(c)(3) non-profit organization representing and advancing the interests of Afghans and Afghan-Americans through advocacy, research, education and engagement.

www.afghanamericans.org

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