US Lawmakers from Both Parties Urge Trump Administration to Halt Plans to Relocate Afghan Allies to DRC
More than 80 House members, including at least three Republicans, sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on June 11 urging the Trump administration to abandon plans to relocate approximately 1,100 Afghan allies stranded in Qatar to unsafe third countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Afghans served as interpreters, contractors, and security personnel alongside US forces during the nearly 20-year Afghanistan mission and have been in limbo since the 2021 US withdrawal from Kabul. The bipartisan appeal highlights tensions between the administration's restrictive Afghan refugee policies and longstanding US commitments to those who aided American military operations.
A bipartisan group of over 80 House Representatives, led by Democratic Representative Jason Crow of Colorado, a former Army Ranger, wrote to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth urging a halt to plans to send roughly 1,100 Afghan allies to unsafe third countries. Earlier in 2026, the Trump administration had been in talks to relocate the Afghans to the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country currently experiencing an Ebola outbreak and ongoing conflict. When questioned at congressional hearings last week, Rubio said the US was in discussions with 'multiple countries' about accepting the Afghans. The letter stressed the essential roles these individuals played as interpreters, contractors, and security personnel during the US mission in Afghanistan, calling their protection both a moral and national security imperative. The situation has grown more politically fraught since late 2025, when an Afghan immigrant was accused of an attack in Washington DC that killed a National Guard soldier — though the suspect had been granted asylum under the Trump administration itself. Trump subsequently signed an executive order barring Afghan refugees, including former military allies, from entering the US, and Republican support for the Special Immigrant Visa program has eroded. The lawmakers requested a briefing by June 24, including details on third-country relocation negotiations and the legal authority to compel Afghan evacuees to move.
What's missing
The articles do not clarify what legal mechanisms, if any, the Trump administration is relying on to compel Afghan evacuees currently in Qatar to relocate to a third country, nor do they detail Qatar's position on the continued presence of these individuals or any timeline the administration is working toward.
How coverage differed
The Guardian framed the story with slightly more emphasis on the moral dimension and the irony of the asylum suspect being granted status under Trump, while The Straits Times provided a more procedural account, including additional details from the letter such as the request for a June 24 briefing and the specific ask regarding vetting-cleared Afghans. The overall framing was broadly similar across both outlets.
What different sources said
- The Straits TimesCenter
Democrats, Republicans ask Trump administration not to ship Afghan allies to unsafe countries
US lawmakers demand Trump officials halt plan to send Afghans to DRC
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