Afghan refugees and migrants protest uncertain future in UAE

Evacuees from Afghanistan sit at the Emirates Humanitarian City in Abu Dhabi, UAE, on August 28, 2021. REUTERS/Vidhyaa Chandramohan

DUBAI, Aug 23 (Reuters) – Afghan refugees and migrants living in United Arab Emirates (UAE) facilities for nearly a year since being evacuated from Afghanistan staged new protests this week over what they say is The resettlement process was slow and opaque.

Hundreds of Afghans held banners chanting freedom on Monday and Tuesday, with thousands still estimated to be awaiting resettlement to the United States or a third country, two Afghans at the facility told Reuters.

Images and video shared with Reuters showed children, women and men protesting inside the facility in Abu Dhabi, known as the Emirates Humanitarian City, where temperatures reached 38 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit) in the Gulf Arab state.

A boy holds a small banner that reads: “One year is enough!”

In a written statement to Reuters, an Emirati official acknowledged that people were frustrated and that the resettlement process was taking longer than the UAE would like.

The official said the UAE will continue to work with the US embassy in the capital Abu Dhabi to deal with Afghans placed in the facility so that they can be resettled in a “timely” manner.

“The UAE remains committed to ongoing cooperation with the US and other international partners to ensure that Afghan evacuees can live safe, secure and dignified lives,” the official said.

A State Department spokesman said Washington is working to identify Afghans who may be eligible for resettlement in the United States and “will persevere in this effort” while “ensuring standard screening and vetting measures.”

It is also working with the UAE and other countries to find “relocation options” for those deemed ineligible to relocate to the US, the spokesman said.

An Afghan, who did not want to be named, said: “We have been detained here for almost a year and the camp is like a modern prison. No one is allowed to go out and they don’t know when (we) will settle permanently in any country. .”

Protests first erupted at the facility in February after the resettlement process appeared to stall, prompting a visit by a senior State Department official who said all Afghans there would be resettled by August. read more

The process resumed shortly after the visit. At the time, there were an estimated 12,000 Afghans at the facility in Abu Dhabi and another nearby location. Since last August, the United States has taken in more than 85,000 Afghans, including many for processing in the Middle East and Europe.

Two Afghans who spoke to Reuters said the mental health of people in tightly controlled facilities was deteriorating due to uncertainty about the future. Both said they did not know when they could be relocated.

UAE officials said those living in the facility received “high-quality housing, hygiene, health, clinical, counselling, education and food services to ensure their well-being.”

#AfghanEvac, a coalition of volunteer groups advocating for the U.S. government on behalf of Afghans, wrote on Twitter after the protests erupted that the process has not stopped and that people in UAE facilities will be relocated to the U.S. or other places.

Following the collapse of the Western-backed Afghan government and the Taliban takeover, the UAE offered to temporarily host thousands of Afghans evacuated on behalf of the United States and other Western nations, Emirati officials said.

Others arrived later on charter flights. Like other Gulf countries, the UAE generally does not accept refugees.

All eligible will be placed in the United States, while others will be placed in third countries, U.S. officials said. According to U.S. officials, no one will be forced to return to Afghanistan, although some in the UAE have returned voluntarily after waiting months.

Among the Afghans detained in the UAE are those who worked with the U.S. government, the military, other coalition partners and foreign charities during the war, advocates say.

Reporting by Alexander Cornwell in Dubai Additional reporting by Jonathan Landay in Washington Editing by Leslie Adler and Matthew Lewis

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