The fundamentalist government of the Taliban in Afghanistan has urged the United States to act with "responsibility and restraint" in the face of the possible start this Monday of flights to deport Afghan refugees from U.S. territory to Pakistan. This country, which in recent months has carried out broad campaigns of expulsion of Afghan citizens, hosts many of them who left Afghanistan fleeing precisely Taliban rule.
In Pakistan, hostility toward the Afghan population has shot up to almost unbearable levels, especially since in February a new episode of armed tension between Islamabad and the Taliban broke out, prompted by the continued attacks by the Pakistani branch of the movement in the border area.
"The Islamic Emirate urges the United States to adopt a responsible and measured approach in this regard," the deputy spokesperson of the Taliban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zia Ahmad Takal, has stated, "and to take any decision or measure regarding the fate of Afghan citizens with a clear mutual understanding, the necessary coordination, and consideration of the rights and legitimate demands of the affected people".
Sources close to the operation have confirmed to Bloomberg and to "The New York Times" that preparations for these deportations are underway. The president of the NGO AfghanEvac, Shawn VanDiver, says he has evidence that, in recent days, at least 80 Afghans have been transferred to Louisiana from 34 other detention centers of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service scattered across the country, 19 of them without legal assistance. The flights, organized without prior public communication, could take off as early as this Monday.
Among those liable for deportation are relatives of Afghans who collaborated with the U.S. armed forces during the war against the Taliban, now back in power in Kabul. Although the Taliban leadership maintains that it is not seeking revenge and has called on refugees to return, international humanitarian organizations denounce that the regime maintains a systematic policy of repression, arbitrary arrests and torture against the reduced dissent that remains in Afghanistan.
The Taliban demand that the United States treat these people in accordance with "the treaties in accordance with the applicable laws, accepted principles and respect for human dignity" and show themselves open "to engaging in practical and mutually understanding interactions in this regard, based on understanding the current reality and taking into account the legitimate concerns of both parties".
Likewise, they underline that "third countries should not negotiate with the fate of the citizens of another country in the name of limited temporary privileges or other considerations, and in their decisions and actions, undermine human dignity, rights and accepted moral and humanitarian norms".
Finally, the Islamist movement assures its commitment "to any constructive interaction and cooperation in the sphere of the dignified, safe and voluntary return of its citizens, and considers it its responsibility to guarantee the rights and safety of its citizens".