WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump said on Sunday he would help Afghans detained in the United Arab Emirates for years after fleeing their country when the United States pulled out and the Taliban took power.

Trump, a Republican who promised a far-reaching immigration crackdown, suspended refugee resettlement after he took office in January. In April, the Trump administration terminated temporary deportation protections for thousands of Afghans in the U.S.

“I will try to save them, starting right now,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social that linked to an article on the Afghans held in limbo there.

Trump cited news website “Just the News” as saying that UAE officials were preparing to hand over some Afghan refugees to the Taliban. Reuters has not confirmed the report.

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The UAE, a close security partner of the United States, agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans evacuated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the U.S.-backed government during the final stages of the U.S.-led withdrawal.

Near 200,000 Afghans Brought to US by Biden Administration

Nearly 200,000 Afghans were brought to the U.S. by former President Joe Biden’s administration since the chaotic U.S. troop withdrawal from Kabul.

Canada agreed in 2022 to resettle about 1,000 of the Afghans still held in the UAE after a U.S. request. It is unclear how many remain in the Gulf country.

Some countries have forced Afghan refugees to return to Afghanistan. Nearly 2 million Afghans were returned from Iran and Pakistan in the past seven months, the United Nations said last week.

Germany on Friday deported 81 Afghan men to Afghanistan amid a tightening of refugee admissions. Some other European countries are pushing to tighten asylum rules in the bloc.

In the United States, Democrats have urged Trump to restore temporary protected status for Afghans, saying women and children could face particular harm under the Taliban-led government in place since 2021.

Refugees include family members of Afghan-American U.S. military personnel, children cleared to reunite with their parents, relatives of Afghans already admitted and tens of thousands of Afghans who worked for the U.S. government during the 20-year war.

Shawn VanDiver, president of the #AfghanEvac advocacy group, urged Trump to follow up on his post with action.

“President Trump has the authority to do the right thing. He should instruct DHS (Department of Homeland Security) and the Department of State to expedite processing, push for third-country partnerships, and ensure that we never again leave our wartime allies behind,” he said in a statement.

—

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Rod Nickel)