US agents increasingly arresting Afghan asylum seekers, lawyers say: A huge chilling effect'

"Immigration agents appear to be increasingly arresting and detaining Afghan asylum seekers, especially men, who have arrived in the US recently and are awaiting court hearings to decide their cases. Amir an asylum seeker who came to the US via Mexico in 2024 was driving home from his English class in Bloomington, Indiana just after noon on Monday, when he was pulled over by an unmarked police vehicle. Minutes later, the asylum seeker from Afghanistan was cuffed and driven to a detention center."

"Most of the Afghan asylum seekers who've been detained had requested asylum at the US-Mexico border over the last two years, attorneys said. Others have entered under Operation Allies Welcome a Biden-era program to help resettle Afghans fleeing the Taliban following the US's withdrawal of the US from their country in 2021. Many had been granted humanitarian parole a temporary legal status that allowed them to live and work in the US while their asylum claims were processed."

US immigration agents have increasingly arrested and detained recently arrived Afghan asylum seekers, with several cases involving men pulled over in public or detained after reporting to ICE. Many detained Afghans requested asylum at the US–Mexico border over the past two years or arrived under Operation Allies Welcome. Several had humanitarian parole that allowed them to live and work while claims were processed. Arrests have prompted widespread fear within Afghan communities, reducing public movement and prompting questions about relocation or travel to other countries. Recent federal policy changes paused asylum decisions for nearly 1.5 million people and halted application processing.

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