Al-Monitor and The Straits Times reported Friday that the Trump administration intends to deport a group of Afghan immigrants to Afghanistan, citing a U.S. official together with a coalition of veterans and advocacy organizations.
The New York Times said more than 150 Afghans could be removed in what would rank among the largest single expulsions of Afghan nationals. Dozens have been detained in Louisiana, and the first flight could leave as early as Monday.
Because Washington has no diplomatic relations with the Taliban, a U.S. official said the deportees would be flown to Pakistan and then pushed across the border. Many of those affected fled after the 2021 Taliban takeover and U.S. withdrawal, said Shawn VanDiver, who leads AfghanEvac.
VanDiver warned that some facing removal are "brothers and sons of men who served alongside U.S. forces, families the Taliban already has every reason to target."
The president says his immigration enforcement push is meant to strengthen domestic security. Advocacy groups argue the effort undermines due process and free speech and has fostered an unsafe climate for minorities, with racial profiling concerns rising, Al-Monitor reported.
The Department of Homeland Security declined to confirm upcoming removal flights, citing operational security. VanDiver called on Congress to grant Afghans in the United States temporary protected status as a shield against deportation.
Pakistan has sent more than 2 million Afghan nationals back to Afghanistan since 2023.