The Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program for Afghan nationals is significantly reliant on the Taliban’s cooperation, as highlighted by the State Department’s Inspector General (IG) in 2023, following the Biden administration’s actions that facilitated mass immigration from Afghanistan.
Recently, a shooting incident occurred involving Rahmanullah Rakanwar, a 29-year-old Afghan, who allegedly opened fire on West Virginia National Guard members Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolf, 24. Notably, both individuals had only been sworn in a day before the event.
Tragically, Beckström later died from her injuries, while Wolf continues to struggle for his life in the hospital.
Rakanwar was resettled in the U.S. under former President Joe Biden’s Operation Welcoming Allies program, which aimed to assist tens of thousands of Afghans, many of whom were neither vetted nor interviewed properly.
In August 2023, two years after the large-scale resettlement efforts began, the State Department IG published a report revealing serious issues within the federal SIV program for Afghan citizens, long supported by both Democratic and Republican officials.
One key finding pointed out that the SIV program’s success hinges on the Taliban’s willingness to cooperate.
“First, because there is no embassy in Afghanistan, the department relies on Taliban cooperation to relocate SIV applicants out of the country,” the report indicated.
The absence of a U.S. diplomatic presence in Afghanistan has limited the ability for Afghan SIV applicants to exit the country and reach U.S. diplomatic missions abroad for visa processing. Officials shared with the OIG that a significant hurdle for SIV applicants leaving Afghanistan is the restricted freedom of movement, which depends entirely on the Taliban’s cooperation. This freedom of movement includes Afghans’ rights to leave the country and cross borders. Ministry representatives informed the OIG that various factors, like Taliban approval for flights, allowing women to travel alone, and logistics of Kabul International Airport, have all impacted Afghan mobility. Since the evacuation in August 2021, the Ministry has urged the Taliban to support improved movement for Afghans, particularly those seeking SIVs. [Emphasis added]
The report was published nearly a year after President Biden authorized in June 2022 that Afghans who had “provided insignificant or limited material support to designated terrorist organizations” could receive protections and immigration benefits in the U.S., according to a Department of Homeland Security official at that time.
Following the incident involving the National Guard, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a halt on all visas for Afghans looking to enter the United States in the interest of national security.
Furthermore, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Secretary Joe Edlow declared that asylum decisions would be suspended “until all aliens have access to the maximum amount of testing and screening possible.”
“The safety of the American people is always our top priority,” Edlow included in his statement.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News.
