Trump Orders Halt to Flights for Nearly 1,660 Afghan Refugees

Washington, January 20, 2025 – On his first day in office, President Donald Trump issued an executive order halting flights for nearly 1,660 Afghan refugees who had been approved for resettlement in the United States. The affected individuals include families of active-duty U.S. military personnel, unaccompanied minors, and those at risk of Taliban retaliation due to their past cooperation with the U.S. government and counterterrorism efforts.

According to Reuters and sources within the U.S. administration, as well as Shawn VanDiver, president of the #AfghanEvac Coalition—a group comprising veterans and human rights organizations—Afghan refugees who had received official resettlement approval have been removed from scheduled flights that were set to depart from Kabul and other locations, including Pakistan, for the United States.

“Afghans and advocates are in a state of panic,” VanDiver said. “I’ve had to charge my phone four times today because so many people are calling me, desperate for answers.”

Uncertainty for Thousands of Refugees

Trump’s decision has created a state of limbo not only for those whose flights were canceled but also for thousands of other approved refugees still awaiting travel arrangements from Afghanistan or Pakistan.

The move is part of Trump’s broader efforts to curb immigration, with his administration arguing that reducing refugee arrivals is necessary to ease pressure on U.S. communities struggling with what it calls an “unsustainable influx” of migrants.

During his 2024 election campaign, Trump vowed to crack down on immigration and tighten asylum programs, claiming that lowering refugee admissions would help protect U.S. security and preserve domestic resources.

According to VanDiver and a U.S. official familiar with the matter, the refugees removed from flight manifests were scheduled for resettlement between now and April 2025.

Among those affected are nearly 200 family members of Afghan-American military personnel who were either born in the U.S. or are Afghan nationals who immigrated, enlisted in the U.S. armed forces, and later became citizens.

Additionally, those who fought for the former Afghan government against the Taliban have been removed from flight lists.

The group also includes approximately 200 unaccompanied minors, as well as parents of children evacuated to the U.S. during the 2021 withdrawal. An undisclosed number of Afghan nationals who worked for U.S. contractors or affiliated organizations—and are eligible for refugee status—have also been affected.

Backlash from U.S. Lawmakers

Trump’s decision has sparked immediate backlash from Democratic members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, who denounced the move in a statement on X (formerly Twitter):

“This is abandonment in its ugliest form. Leaving our vetted allies at the mercy of the Taliban is disgraceful.”

Following his swearing-in, Trump is expected to sign an executive order suspending all U.S. refugee admissions for at least four months. The White House has stated that this decision is aimed at reducing the burden on U.S. communities and preserving domestic resources.

Trump’s administration insists the policy shift is necessary to manage security and ensure that resources are allocated efficiently in areas facing what it describes as overwhelming migrant inflows.

This marks one of the first major policy reversals of Trump’s second presidency, setting the stage for further restrictions on asylum and refugee programs in the coming months.