Afghans who helped the U.S. are in dangerous limbo after Trump's order on refugees
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Surayya's flight to the United States was already booked when President Trump ordered a pause on the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program. Not long after, her flight was canceled and her stomach dropped.
"I don't know what to do," she said. "If I go back to Afghanistan, I will be prosecuted or even be killed by the Taliban."
Surayya, who asked NPR not to use her full name for safety reasons, used to work on women's rights projects with the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. But when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, Surayya and her children fled to neighboring Pakistan. There, she applied for resettlement in the U.S. and was approved.
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Now, Surayya's future and safety look uncertain, along with tens of thousands of other Afghans who risked their lives working for the U.S. government or military.
During Trump's first day in office, the president issued an executive order to pause re
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