News & Resources

Afghan SIV Petitions for Protection

On August 18, 2021, we filed petitions for protection with the State Department under the Afghan Allies Protection Act (“AAPA”) requesting the immediate evacuation of all SIV applicants, including many of our individual clients, who remain stranded in Afghanistan. Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan, IRAP has been receiving a continuous stream of emails from SIV clients who are in hiding in fear for their lives.

The petitions rely on the authority in AAPA sec 602(b)(6), which requires the Secretary of State to provide protection to Afghans seeking special immigrant status and their families who are in imminent danger. This is the first time to IRAP’s knowledge that the State Department has been formally petitioned under that authority.

IRAP is currently awaiting a response to its petitions from the State Department.

Follow the Petitions

Aug 18, 2021

IRAP Files Emergency Legal Petitions for Evacuation for Stranded Afghans Who Supported the U.S. in Wartime

This morning, the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) filed multiple emergency petitions for protection with the U.S. State Department on behalf of all Afghan applicants in the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program, demanding the U.S. government fulfill its legal obligation to protect our allies by evacuating them and their families to safety immediately.

Press Release

  • IRAP Files Emergency Legal Petitions for Evacuation for Stranded Afghans Who Supported the U.S. in Wartime

    8/18/2021

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