afghan refugees

The next challenge for Afghan refugees is finding affordable housing and jobs

4:13pm February 25, 2022

by Deepa Shivaram

Afghan refugees have left their first destination in the U.S.: military bases. Now they're resettling in communities around the country. But finding affordable housing makes the transition difficult.

People waiting outside of a gate at the Kabul airport.

From Kabul to Virginia: An Afghan family is starting over in America

1:08pm January 25, 2022

by H.J. Mai

In only a matter of days, the lives of an Afghan family changed forever. After the Taliban took control of Kabul, they were forced to start over in a foreign country.

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World News

An Afghan girls soccer team rebelled to play the game they love. Now they're refugees

5:07pm January 05, 2022

by Joanna Kakissis

The teenagers on the Afghan girls national soccer team lean on each other as they adjust to a new life in Portugal, where they fled after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

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A still from the 1961 Hindi film Kabuliwala, directed by Hemen Gupta.

This 19th-century short story might help combat racism against refugees today

2:39pm December 10, 2021

by Lauren Frayer

India's Rabindranath Tagore was the first nonwhite writer to win the Nobel Prize in literature. His 1892 story, "The Kabuliwala," fostered empathy for migrants and refugees. It still resonates today.

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In this file photo from 2016, a bookshop owner in Pakistan shows a National Geographic magazine with the cover photograph of Afghan refugee woman Sharbat Gula. She arrived in Italy as part of the West's evacuation of Afghans following the Taliban takeover

World News

The woman from National Geographic's famous 'Afghan Girl' photo is evacuated to Italy

11:53am November 25, 2021

by The Associated Press

Sharbat Gula arrived in Italy as part of the West's evacuation effort, Italy's government said Thursday. Premier Mario Draghi's office said Italy organized her evacuation after she asked for help.

Zahra Yagana, her daughter Parisa and son Jawed spent close to two months at Fort McCoy in western Wisconsin.

National

Newly arrived Afghans get creative and find their own way to homes

5:00am November 22, 2021

Thousands of recent Afghan refugees are still living on military bases as resettlement agencies struggle to find affordable housing. Some, like Zahra Yagana, are finding help in unexpected places.

The White House point person on Afghan resettlement, Jack Markell, is trying to ensure a smooth — and politics-free — resettlement of the largest group of war evacuees since Vietnam.

Politics & Government

EXCLUSIVE: Governors have questions about Afghan refugees. Here's who they call

12:37pm October 08, 2021

by Franco Ordoñez

President Biden put former Delaware Gov. Jack Markell in charge of helping connect federal agencies resettling Afghan refugees with state and local officials, and private sector groups.

Kristyn Peck, CEO of Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area, outside the group's Fairfax office.

National

Newly arrived Afghans test a refugee resettlement system that's rebuilding on the fly

4:15pm October 07, 2021

by Joel Rose

Northern Virginia is home to one of the largest Afghan communities in the U.S., making it a prime destination for new arrivals. One refugee organization is scrambling to prepare.

Dr. Saleema Rehman stands outside Holy Family Hospital in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. The Afghan refugee of Turkmen origin has won UNHCR's Nansen Award for her work helping refugee moms and babies in Pakistan.

An Afghan refugee girl grew up to be a prize-winning doc — with a little help from dad

4:15pm October 05, 2021

by Ruchi Kumar

From the moment Saleema Rehman was born, her father believed she was destined to be a doctor. Now she is the winner of a top U.N. award for her work helping displaced women in Pakistan.

Imam Mohamed Herbert of the Islamic Society of Tulsa, the city's only mosque, whose congregation is preparing to aid in resettling the 850 Afghan refugees bound for the city.

Oklahoma Welcomes Hundreds Of Afghan Refugees — Despite The State GOP's Objections

7:09pm September 29, 2021

by Chris Polansky

Oklahoma is welcoming more Afghan refugees than any state besides California and Texas. The state Republican party opposes it, but elected GOP leaders are defying it and eager to help new arrivals.