Amidst foreign troops withdrawal, thousands of Afghan interpreters and staff members have expressed concerns about threats against them, but the Taliban in a statement said on Monday that the Afghans can continue their normal life, and that they will not face any threat.
“The Islamic Emirate will not perturb them but calls them to return to their normal lives and if they do have expertise, in any filed, to sever their country. They shall not be in a danger on our port,” a statement by Taliban reads.
The Taliban said that those Afghans who worked with international troops should not fear and should continue living a peaceful life in their own country.
“If they are using the danger as an excuse to bolster their fake asylum case, then that is their own problem,” Taliban said.
US President Joe Biden announced in April to withdraw all American troops from Afghanistan by Sept. 11. The announcement was followed by concerns about the political future of Afghanistan.
As US and NATO troops continue withdrawing from Afghanistan, dozens of Afghan workers who have partnered with foreigners over the past 20 years are concerned about the situation and are seeking protection.
Concerned about the approach of September 11 - the deadline for all foreign troops to leave Afghanistan – these translators and employees said their lives would face serious threats after all foreign troops including France leave the country.
The workers say that staying in Afghanistan is like a nightmare for them because they receive constant threats because they worked with coalition forces.
Meanwhile, another group of Afghans who have worked with Canadian forces in Afghanistan gathered in front of the Canadian embassy in Kabul and called on the Canadian government and the United Nations to help them find asylum in Western countries as foreign troops, including Canadians, are leaving the country by September 11.
The translators and employees, who were employed by the Canada forces in Afghanistan, said they have been repeatedly threatened with death and will not be able to live in Afghanistan after the complete withdrawal of foreign troops.
Thousands of Afghans have worked with foreign forces in Afghanistan as translators and workers since the coalition forces came to Afghanistan in 2001. The exact number of these locally-employed staff is not available.
Afghan translators and other employees who have worked with foreign forces in Afghanistan have been threatened by various groups for cooperating with these forces. Dozens have lost their lives while hundreds have been wounded.
Recently, the United States government announced that it would provide special immigrant visas to 18,000 Afghan translators and their families who backed US missions during the past 20 years.