Taliban Prime Minister Mohammad Hassan Akhund made the amnesty offer in his message for the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha, also known as the Feast of Sacrifice
Taliban’s offer comes after President Trump signed a decree banning 12 countries, including Afghanistan. Pic/PTI
A top Taliban official said on Saturday that all Afghans who fled the country after the collapse of the former Western-backed government are free to return home, promising they would not be harmed if they come back. Taliban Prime Minister Mohammad Hassan Akhund made the amnesty offer in his message for the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha, also known as the Feast of Sacrifice.
The offer comes days after US President Donald Trump announced a sweeping travel ban on 12 countries, including Afghanistan. Afghans in neighbouring Pakistan who are awaiting resettlement are also dealing with a deportation drive. Akhund’s holiday message was posted on the social platform X. “Afghans who have left the country should return to their homeland,” he said.
Taliban Prime Minister Mohammad Hassan Akhund. Pic/Instagram@soanwatan
“Nobody will harm them. Come back to your ancestral land and live in an atmosphere of peace,” he added, and instructed officials to properly manage services for returning refugees and to ensure they were given shelter and support. He also used the occasion to criticise the media for making what he said were “false judgements” about Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers and their policies.
Afghan immigration trends since 2021
The Taliban came back to power in Kabul as the previous Afghan government collapsed amid the US and NATO withdrawal from the country on August 15, 2021. The insurgents had been fighting the foreign troops for most of 20 years. The Taliban soon declared a new government, which remains unrecognised to this day by any foreign state or international institution.
The offensive prompted a mass exodus, with tens of thousands of Afghans crowding the airport, panicking in the hopes of a US military airlift. People also fled across the border, to neighbouring Iran and Pakistan. Among those escaping the new Taliban rulers for their safety were also former government officials, journalists, activists and those who had helped the US during its campaign against the Taliban.
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