Urix

Britain has rescued 29 strange refugees from Afghanistan. According to UDI, Norway does not have the opportunity to actively extract anyone from there because of the current situation.

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Britain has evacuated the first LGBT+ people rescued from Afghanistan since the country fell to the Taliban. Secretary of State Liz Truss said the refugees were the first of many and that the country would continue to help vulnerable Afghans.

The 29 arrived in Britain, after months in a regime that threatened to execute queers in a practice known as “wall overthrow”. It has been reported that several queers have been shot since the Taliban took power in August.

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No plans for a Norwegian rescue operation

According to the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI), no similar rescue operations are underway in Norway.

– We currently have no presence in Afghanistan, nor do we have the opportunity to actively take anyone out of there as the situation is now, UDI told Blikk.

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Extensive collaborative project

Several organizations, including Stonewall, Canadian Rainbow Railroad and refugee organization The Safe Project, have been working with British authorities to organize rescue operations.

“Many others are still trapped in Afghanistan, in danger of being tortured and killed, and we hope today marks the start of more safe routes to asylum for LGBTQ people,” said Tess Berry-Hart of The Safe Project.

Liz Truss, UK Secretary of State and Minister for Women and Gender Equality, wrote in one pers conference that the authorities “played a key role in getting these people out of the country.” Truss said Britain would “continue to help vulnerable Afghans”.

Norway accepts refugees through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). UNHCR promotes applications for resettlement refugees. UDI then decides which ones will be allowed to come to Norway.

According to UDI, resettlement refugees are people who are «usually registered as refugees with UNHCR, but cannot be offered a permanent solution in the country they are in and are therefore submitted for transfer to a third country.

– The normal practice is when transfer migration is promoted by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees or others, LGBT people are prioritized over the quota. In cases where Afghans themselves arrive in Norway and seek asylum, their cases are processed individually. UDI assesses that LGBT people have a well-founded fear of persecution upon returning to Afghanistan.

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