Washington, D.C.—Church World Service today celebrated the arrival of 200 Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) recipients—individuals who served alongside the U.S. mission in Afghanistan—to the United States and urges the Biden administration and Congress to prioritize the evacuation of the more than 18,000 who still remain. The organization, along with other U.S. partner agencies, will provide services for arrivals through case management and resettlement services.
“These men and women put themselves at risk to support the U.S. mission in Afghanistan. They were interpreters, they were cooks, they were office workers. They took on a great number of roles to keep Americans safe and defend their nation. With the withdrawal of U.S. forces, however, they are increasingly vulnerable for that service,” said Erol Kekic, Senior Vice President for the Immigration and Refugee Program at Church World Service. “As we continue to urge for their timely evacuation, we must also do all we can to ensure that upon arrival these allies and their families have everything they need to begin rebuilding their lives. That’s why we are involved from the moment they set foot on American soil, so they can focus on family and the future, not the fear they’ve been living in for far too long.”
Church World Service welcomes refugees across 17 states through 23 offices. We provide services to newly arrived refugees and immigrants, helping them to integrate into local communities, find jobs and learn the necessary skills to support their new lives in the United States. Nine of these offices are directly overseen by CWS and as such set the standard for resettlement in local communities
For more information or to speak with Kekic, contact media@cwsglobal.org.