LONDON: Afghan refugees who were relocated to the UK from Pakistan have been “dumped” in military bases across the country.
Charity chiefs and military officials say the move is a betrayal of Afghans who served alongside British and Western forces during the campaign against the Taliban.
About 3,000 Afghans with ties to Britain’s military are set to be relocated to the UK from Pakistan.
They had fled their homes to neighboring Pakistan following the Taliban takeover, and as fears mounted over the potential for revenge attacks against Afghans who worked with Western forces.
But since some of the refugees arrived in Britain, hundreds of Afghan veterans have been “dumped” and “segregated from their new community” inside military barracks across the UK, said Steve Smith, CEO of charity Care4Calais.
Behind barbed wire fences at sites in Loughborough, Gloucestershire, Blackpool and Staffordshire, the “betrayed” veterans are being held back from “starting their new lives,” he added.
Smith warned that the government had “let down Afghans who served alongside UK forces in Afghanistan.”
One refugee living in a military base told The Independent that he had struggled to access medical help, turning to a charity volunteer to work out how to contact the authorities for antibiotics.
He added: “There is no way to leave. No one can come in, and no one can leave the base. We’ve not been told anything about how long we’re going to be here; they just put us here for an unknown period of time. There’s nothing to do here. We are just staring at the walls right now.”
Some of the Afghan arrivals have been rehoused in military homes — the goal of the relocation plan, dubbed Operation Lazurite — but many remain in barracks and are unable to leave. Some have been told they must endure a six-week wait before being given permanent homes.
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: “We are committed to providing the best possible care for eligible Afghan families upon arrival to the UK, which includes access to a 24-hour support network, deployed Medical Liaison Officers and interpreters. We are working closely across government to support their resettlement.” AFP
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