WASHINGTON — The head of AfghanEvac, an advocacy group for Afghans evacuated to the United States, has sharply criticized the Trump administration’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Afghan nationals, calling the move a “betrayal” of the promises made to those who risked their lives to support the United States.
“This decision isn’t rooted in reality; it’s rooted in politics,” said Shawn VanDiver, head of AfghanEvac, in a statement released Tuesday. “Afghanistan remains under Taliban control, there is no functioning asylum system, and extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detentions, and human rights violations—especially against women and ethnic minorities—continue unabated.”
VanDiver warned that ending the program will destabilize lives, tear families apart, and further erode America’s moral credibility. “It will not enhance U.S. national security,” he said. “It will destroy what remains of our moral standing.”
The Department of Homeland Security announced Monday that TPS for Afghans who entered the United States following the fall of Kabul in 2021 will expire on July 12. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the decision was based on what she described as “improved security conditions” in Afghanistan. She also cited concerns over “potential fraud and national security threats” among some TPS holders as justification for the policy shift.
TPS for Afghan nationals was first introduced under President Biden as part of a broader effort to protect thousands of Afghans who arrived in the United States amid the chaotic withdrawal from Kabul and the Taliban’s return to power.
VanDiver pledged that AfghanEvac and its partners would fight the decision “in court, in Congress, and in the court of public opinion.”
The Trump administration has faced growing pressure from refugee advocates and veterans’ groups, who argue that ending TPS for Afghans abandons the very people the U.S. once vowed to protect. Critics say the conditions on the ground in Afghanistan remain perilous and that the U.S. has failed to build an adequate pathway to permanent residency for many evacuees.
