In a bipartisan effort, Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) have publicly denounced the Trump administration’s decision to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for over 8,000 Afghan nationals currently living in the United States. The senators expressed their profound concern in a joint letter addressed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, urging the administration to reconsider its decision.
“This decision endangers thousands of lives, including Afghans who stood by the United States,” the senators wrote. “It represents a historic betrayal of promises made and undermines the values we fought for over more than two decades in Afghanistan.”
The termination of TPS, set to take effect in July 2025, has sparked widespread concern among the Afghan community and advocacy groups. Many Afghan refugees who arrived in the U.S. post-Taliban takeover supported the U.S. efforts during the 20 years in Afghanistan. They face the risk of deportation to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, where conditions have deteriorated significantly since the U.S. withdrawal.
TPS was initially granted to Afghan refugees under the Biden Administration on May 20, 2022, in response to the humanitarian crisis following the U.S. withdrawal and the Taliban’s return to power. The program provided temporary legal status and work authorization to those unable to safely return to their home country.
Under Taliban rule for nearly four years, the security and the economy have both deteriorated in Afghanistan, and the country remains one of the most dangerous places in the world, particularly for women and girls. The Taliban leadership has instituted a system of gender apartheid and has systematically targeted women and girls, issuing nearly 150 edicts that strip women of their most basic rights. These decrees have banned women from education, barred them from employment, and even prohibited them from gathering or speaking to one another in public. Girls as young as 12 and in some places even 10 are barred from attending schools.
As the senators highlighted in the letter, “millions of Afghans are on the brink of famine,” and that “the Taliban has confined women to their homes as they issue edict after edict to strip them of their hard-won freedoms.”
The senators emphasized the moral and humanitarian obligations of the U.S. and stated that “deporting Afghan women and girls would condemn them to a life of fear and oppression. Beyond the moral and humanitarian obligation, doing so reaffirms to our allies and partners around the world that the United States stands by those who stand with us.”
The senators also pointed out that many Afghan allies who worked as journalists, educators, activists, or with international NGOs are at heightened risk of targeted retaliation. While some who worked directly with U.S. forces are eligible for Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs), others who contributed to vibrant civil society efforts are not, leaving them vulnerable and at “risk for retaliation by the Taliban.” The Taliban has long viewed civil society, media, and women’s rights work as a “direct threat to their totalitarian and fundamentalist government.”
Several other senators and representatives have expressed serious concern over the termination of key programs related to Afghan allies, including TPS, the Coordinated Afghan Relocation Effort (CARE), and Operation Enduring Welcome. These programs were critical to upholding the United States’ promise to Afghan allies who risked their lives in support of U.S. missions. Lawmakers warn that dismantling these protections not only endangers thousands of lives but also damages U.S. credibility and moral leadership on the global stage.
Advocacy groups, including the Feminist Majority Foundation, have echoed the senators’ concerns and have called it “unconscionable.” As Senator Amy Klobuchar stated in a joint letter early this year, “We made a promise to our Afghan partners, and when the United States makes a promise – a covenant – we must keep it.” As the July deadline approaches, the fate of thousands of Afghan nationals in the U.S. hangs in the balance.
Take action by calling your Members of Congress—your representative and two senators—and urge them to stand with our Afghan allies who risked everything to support the U.S. mission in Afghanistan.
Sources: Senate Foreign Relations Committee; X, Senator Amy Klobuchar
