Shawn VanDiver, the president of AfghanEvac, a U.S.-based organization supporting Afghan asylum seekers, has stated that the Trump administration has revoked the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) documents of Afghan migrants living in the United States.
VanDiver shared this information on his social media accounts on Friday, April 11. According to him, Afghan asylum seekers holding TPS documents in the U.S. have been given only seven days to leave the country.
He has urged Afghan migrants not to leave the United States without first consulting their legal counsel.
Earlier, U.S. media outlets, citing Tricia McLaughlin, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, reported that the Trump administration had cancelled the TPS documents of 14,600 Afghan nationals in the country.
These Afghan migrants with TPS documents are individuals who entered the U.S. due to humanitarian crises after the fall of Kabul in 2021. Most arrived through emergency evacuation flights, humanitarian visas, or official immigration programs like SIV and USRAP, while others entered the U.S. irregularly. After undergoing thorough screenings, many were found ineligible for recognized immigration programs, and were instead granted TPS, allowing them to temporarily reside in the U.S.
Reports also indicate that alongside Afghan migrants, nearly 10,000 Cameroonian nationals with TPS are now facing the threat of deportation from the U.S.
This comes at a time when many Afghan asylum seekers are trying to prevent this decision due to the dire situation in their home country and the harsh conditions of refugee camps. Many human rights advocates have urged the U.S. government to thoroughly review the circumstances of these individuals and ensure that their human rights are upheld.
