Additional Coverage:
LONDON — Thousands of Afghans, many of whom aided British forces, have been secretly relocated to the U.K. The British government revealed this information Tuesday, explaining the covert operation stemmed from a 2022 data leak that exposed the identities of nearly 19,000 Afghan applicants seeking refuge in Britain after the Taliban seized control. Fears arose that this leak, portions of which appeared online, could make these individuals targets.
Defense Secretary John Healey addressed the House of Commons, expressing his concern over the lack of transparency surrounding the program, which operated under a court-ordered superinjunction preventing its disclosure. The injunction was lifted Tuesday as the current Labour government decided to unveil the program. An independent review reportedly found minimal evidence that the leaked data significantly increased the risk of Taliban reprisals.
The program, now slated for closure, has already resettled approximately 4,500 individuals – 900 applicants and roughly 3,600 family members. An additional 6,900 are expected to be relocated before the program ends, bringing the total cost to an estimated £850 million ($1.1 billion). This is in addition to the 36,000 Afghans already resettled in the U.K. through other programs.
British troops were deployed to Afghanistan following the September 11, 2001 attacks, joining the fight against al-Qaida and the Taliban. At its peak, the British presence in Afghanistan numbered nearly 10,000 troops, primarily stationed in Helmand province. Combat operations concluded in 2014.