US expands efforts to resettle Afghans at risk of Taliban retaliation

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WASHINGTON – The US military is preparing to house up to 35,000 Afghan interpreters and their family members at two US bases, in Kuwait and Qatar, in an expanded effort to help those facing Taliban retribution for helping US forces, US officials said.

Plans are underway to build temporary housing and other facilities at Camp Al Sailiya in Qatar and Camp Boring in Kuwait that will be designed to house the interpreters for at least 18 months. Officials said thousands of welcome packs, which contain health and convenience items and packed military meals that do not contain pork, to accommodate Muslims’ dietary requirements, are being put into the bases.

Officials said the plans are to accommodate the interpreters and their families pending US visa processing for permanent resettlement in the US construction, and further preparations at the two bases are expected to cost the US government several hundreds of millions of dollars.

Plans build on similar preparations elsewhere. Officials said a first group of about 2,500 Afghan interpreters and their families are expected to arrive in Fort Lee, Virginia, in the coming days. Officials said these people, which include 750 applicants and family members, will stay in Fort Lee for a week to 10 days before being resettled in the United States permanently.

Thousands of interpreters and their families are still very far away in the special immigrant visa application process, which can take several years to complete. As Taliban fighters make gains across Afghanistan, officials point to the growing need to evacuate these translators and their families from the country as soon as possible to protect them from potential retaliation.

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