A 29-year-old Afghan man suspected of shooting two National Guard members came to the United States in September 2021 through a program known as Operation Allies Welcome, the homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, said Wednesday night.
The Biden administration developed the program in the wake of the Taliban’s retaking of power in Afghanistan in August 2021. It allowed for the entry of certain vulnerable Afghan nationals into the United States on two-year grants of parole, which did not confer any form of permanent immigration status. Instead, the Afghans were expected to apply for other means to stay in the country, such as asylum.
Afghans enrolled in the program were initially processed and housed at U.S. military bases across the nation before resettling in the country.
At the time of the program’s launch, Biden administration officials framed the initiative as an effort to help those who were critical in assisting U.S. troops and the American effort to build civil society in Afghanistan, that became at risk of retribution from the Taliban. They emphasized that the program included vetting and security checks.
The Congressional Research Service estimated that around 77,000 Afghans entered the U.S. under the program, which was in place about a year.
Operation Allies Welcome came under Republican scrutiny while it was in place, including some who said those who entered were not properly vetted.
“It is inconceivable that proper vetting procedures were followed during the chaos and disarray of the U.S. evacuation of Afghanistan and questions remain to the nature of persons enrolled in domestic resettlement programs,” Representative James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky, said in a statement in 2023 in which he demanded more information from federal agencies about Afghan resettlement efforts.
The Department of Homeland Security Inspector General found some flaws with the program, including data inaccuracies in the files of some of the individuals who came through the initiative.
Hamed Aleaziz covers the Department of Homeland Security and immigration policy for The Times.
The post What Is Operation Allies Welcome, the Program That Gave Some Afghans Entry to the U.S.? appeared first on New York Times.
