‘They’re dead’: Defence rejects Afghan generals’ visa pleas despite army chief backing
Defence has rejected a bid from two Afghan generals, who served alongside Australian forces, to avoid deportation back to Afghanistan where their supporters say they face almost certain death at the hands of the Taliban.
The Department of Defence has rejected an attempt to save two Afghan generals who served with Australian soldiers from deportation, despite Chief of Army Simon Stuart endorsing a letter supporting their application.
Supporters of the two Afghans say they will face almost certain death at the hands of the Taliban if there is not a last-minute intervention from Defence Minister Richard Marles.
The two generals, who Capital Brief is not naming over concerns for their safety, are currently in a safehouse in Pakistan on tenuous year-long visas. But Pakistan, where thousands of Afghans fled soon after the Taliban’s 2021 takeover, has launched a wave of deportations sending refugees back over the border.
A bid from the pair to be classified as locally-engaged employees (LEEs) was rejected on Thursday. The federal government has received more than 215,000 applications for humanitarian visas from Afghanistan since the takeover, but those certified as LEEs are moved to the top of its queue.
