Washington, D.C. | October 31, 2026
The Afghan-American Foundation (AAF) is deeply alarmed by reports that the Trump administration is preparing to deport more than 150 Afghan nationals through Pakistan, potentially exposing them to onward removal to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. Those reportedly affected may include family members of Afghans who assisted U.S. forces and individuals who face serious risks of persecution.
These reports raise urgent questions that the U.S. government has yet to adequately answer publicly: Who is being detained and deported, and what are their legal circumstances? Do those affected include individuals with pending asylum claims, valid immigration documentation, or existing protection orders? Have they and their attorneys been informed of their intended destinations and afforded meaningful access to applicable legal protections? And what safeguards exist against onward removal from Pakistan to Afghanistan?
These concerns are particularly troubling given documented problems with detention procedures and transparency in previous removal operations. The absence of adequate disclosure and independent accountability raises serious questions about whether the government is fulfilling its legal obligations. The administration must provide answers before carrying out potentially irreversible removals—not after.
According to UNHCR and IOM reporting, approximately 2.74 million Afghans have returned from Pakistan to Afghanistan since September 2023. These returns cannot all be considered genuinely voluntary. UN monitoring has identified fear of arrest as a major driver of departures, with 95% of surveyed undocumented Afghan returnees and Afghan Citizen Card holders citing this concern. Against this backdrop, transferring Afghans from the United States to Pakistan without credible safeguards against onward removal risks exposing them to the same dangers they sought to escape under Taliban rule.
For American veterans who served alongside Afghan allies, these reported removals raise painful questions about the promises made through years of shared service and sacrifice. For Afghan families, deportation can mean a father separated from his children, a household torn apart, and the possibility of permanent separation. And for the United States, the question is ultimately one of national conscience: What does America's word mean if those who placed their trust in it can be returned to the very dangers they were promised protection from?
A promise made on the battlefield should not expire at an immigration detention center.
Legal protections, individualized assessments where required, and safeguards against persecution or torture must be established before individuals are removed from U.S. territory—not after they have been transferred to another country.
AAF calls on the Department of Homeland Security to immediately pause the reported removals until applicable legal protections and safeguards are verified, provide sufficient information to affected individuals, their legal representatives, and appropriate oversight bodies, and ensure meaningful access to applicable review procedures.
AAF further calls on Congress to urgently exercise its oversight responsibilities and demand answers from DHS concerning the legal circumstances of those detained, detention and removal procedures, third-country arrangements, and safeguards against return to persecution. Congress must not allow these removals to proceed without meaningful scrutiny of the government's actions and compliance with applicable legal protections.
America's commitments to those who stood alongside it cannot end at the border. Nor should protection from persecution depend solely on whether an Afghan previously assisted the United States.
No Afghan should be returned to foreseeable persecution or torture, directly or through a third country. Transparency, accountability, and protection must come before deportation.
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