AfghanEvac Weekly Update | May 26, 2026
The DRC plan collapses, USCIS quietly redefines the green card, Europe continues to betray Afghans, and Secretary Rubio faces SFRC next week.
THE DAY AFTER MEMORIAL DAY
Yesterday, the country observed Memorial Day.
We remember the 2,461 American service members who gave their lives in Afghanistan, the thirteen who died at Abbey Gate on August 26, 2021, and every Gold Star family who has carried that loss in the years since.
We remember the Afghan interpreters, soldiers, and partners who fell beside them.
The promise we are fighting to keep was made in their company.
The day after the wreaths are laid is the day the work resumes.
This is that day.
This week we are also reminding our community that wherever you are, in the United States or anywhere in the world, you can ask us to come to you.
We show up.
Town halls coming up in Rochester, Dallas, and Fort Worth. More cities on the way.
Sign up at afghanevac.org/town-hall and we will build a visit around the people who want us there.
ACTION THIS WEEK
Read and share the new USCIS adjustment of status explainer. afghanevac.org/aos-guidance-change
Call your senator and your representative before Tuesday, June 2. Secretary Rubio testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday, June 2, and the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday, June 3. Ask your members to press him on CAS, the new AOS memo, and June SIV compliance benchmarks. Capitol switchboard: 202-224-3121.
Register your interest in our town halls. Learn more in the writeup below, but we want to come to your area and can only do that if we have a critical mass of people.
Donate. afghanevac.org/donate
Share this with your networks.
CAS UPDATE — THE DRC PLAN IS DEAD. THE PROMISE IS NOT.
The administration’s plan to relocate Afghan allies from Camp As Sayliyah to the Democratic Republic of the Congo is dead. After weeks of public pressure, a 29-senator letter led by Senator Blumenthal, sustained press attention, an open letter signed by over 1,000 people, and the courage of CAS residents like Zahra, the State Department is back to the drawing board on where the 1,100 Afghan allies still held at the camp will go.
This is a real win but it is not the win. The State Department is now identifying alternative destinations, and we are tracking that work closely with our partners and our congressional allies. We are not going to speculate publicly about specific options under discussion. What we will say is what we have always said. Approximately 900 of the 1,100 people at CAS are already approved for U.S. admission. Around 150 are immediate family members of active-duty U.S. service members. More than 400 are children. They were vetted. They were promised. They are owed the destination they were promised.
So what does success look like at CAS. It is the same as it has been since this began.
U.S. admission for those who can clear, through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program or humanitarian parole, the path Senator Shaheen named in her May letter to Secretary Rubio.
For any case that cannot move directly to the United States, a third-country arrangement that respects the service these allies rendered to our nation, with durable legal status, freedom of movement, family unity, and access to continued U.S. case processing.
Nothing less.
Significant effort is going into making that outcome real. Coalition partners, members of Congress in both parties, retired flag officers, faith leaders, and Afghan-led organizations are all working this from different angles, in different rooms, with the same goal. The DRC plan is dead because we made it untenable.
If the next plan is bad, we’ll do everything in our power to make that one untenable too.
And we will keep showing up, in public and in private, until every person at CAS has an answer that honors what was promised to them.
USCIS QUIETLY REDEFINES THE GREEN CARD
On May 21, USCIS issued Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199, the most consequential administrative action against Afghan allies inside the United States since the travel ban. It does not change a single line of statute. It changes how every USCIS officer is now instructed to treat humanitarian parolees, which is to say nearly every Afghan ally brought here through Operation Allies Welcome.
In the policy memo, Adjustment of status is reframed as an “extraordinary” act of “administrative grace.” Officers are told to treat parole entry as a negative factor and to require “unusual or even outstanding equities” before approving. A clean record, a job, a family, a life built across four years in America, none of that is sufficient on its own anymore.
The administration’s stated alternative is consular processing from the home country. For Afghan allies, that alternative does not exist. The U.S. embassy in Kabul has been closed since August 2021. The administration is directing Afghan allies to pursue a pathway it knows is unavailable.
A denial does not deport anyone today. It begins the chain. Denial triggers referral to immigration court, which initiates removal proceedings, which end in deportation orders. This memo belongs alongside the Chamorro detention memo, the travel ban, the SIV processing freezes, and the executive orders suspending refugee admissions. Taken together, they are a coordinated administrative campaign to block Afghan allies from achieving lawful permanent residence in the country they helped serve.
If you have a pending adjustment application, talk to a qualified immigration attorney now.
IF YOU RECEIVED A CHIEF OF MISSION DENIAL OR WITHDRAWAL OF SUPPORT
We are seeing a sharp rise in Chief of Mission denials and withdrawals of support being issued to Afghan allies who are already inside the United States. These letters revoke the underlying approval that anchors the SIV pathway and, depending on the recipient’s posture, can cascade into a loss of status, work authorization, or legal protection from removal.
The letters look like this
If you are in the United States and you have received a COM denial or a withdrawal of support, fill out our intake form at afghanevac.org/com-help. Once we have your information, we will refer you to a legal services provider. We will also share de-identified data with the immigration attorneys and litigators working on this issue, so the response keeps up with the scale of what is happening.
A few things to be clear about.
This is for people in the United States only. If you are outside the United States, this intake will not be actioned, and we will not give anyone false hope. The legal questions for allies still in transit are different and require different support.
You must include proof that you are in the United States. The form will ask for a copy of your green card. Without it, the intake will not move forward.
Do not wait. A COM denial or withdrawal of support is not the end of your case, but the response window matters. Submit your information today.
We will keep updating the community as the legal response develops. If you know an ally who has received one of these letters, forward this section to them today.
COME SEE US, OR LET US COME TO YOU
As often as we are asked, we visit Afghan communities around the country and around the world to answer questions, hear stories, and build community. We take what we hear and carry the voices of our allies into Congress, into the press, and into the rooms where decisions are made. San Diego this past weekend is one example. There will be more.
For security reasons, we do not usually share town hall details publicly more than a few days in advance. We do circulate flyers throughout the Afghan community in each region as the event approaches. If you are a community leader in a region we are visiting, we will get the flyer to you.
We have town halls coming up in the next few days in Rochester, Dallas, and Fort Worth. If you are in one of those communities, sign up now so we can get you the details. If you want us to come to your community, sign up. The more interest we see from a region, the faster we can build a visit around it.
A note for Afghan women and girls specifically. The May 23 listening session at Kunduz Kabob House was the kind of conversation we want to keep having, in more places, with more women and girls at the table. If you want to be part of the next one, join our Women and Girls engagement list. This list is for women and girls only.
DORCAS INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF RHODE ISLAND v. USCIS
Counsel argued Dorcas on May 21, challenging four USCIS policies that have functionally frozen adjustment of status for refugees and asylees, the Global Asylum Hold, the Benefits Hold, Comprehensive Re-Review, and the Country-Specific Factors Policy. We expect a ruling, or at least an indication of where the court is heading, in the coming days or weeks. As soon as we have it, we will put it out. Watch your inbox.
ENGAGEMENT CONTINUES WITH TALIBAN IN EUROPE
Last week, we shed light on the fact that European countries such as Germany have opened talks with the Taliban regime to potentially repatriate Afghan asylum seekers from Germany back to Afghanistan. Pathways for Afghans are being restricted everywhere, and this latest move by European governments puts even more pressure on advocacy groups and Afghan communities to share their stories about why negotiations with the Taliban put all Afghans at risk.
Right now in Germany, talks are ongoing between members of the German government and other European entities to ensure that Afghans have a safe pathway to a durable life for them and their families.
#AfghanEvac is showing up by standing in solidarity with our German Afghan community and advocating for every Afghan voice to be heard instead of the Taliban regime who continue to put millions in harms way.
BATTLE BUDDIES IN NEW YORK CITY
The Battle Buddies team spent time in New York City this past week alongside volunteers from the New Sanctuary Coalition, observing immigration court hearings at 26 Federal Plaza. Former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander was also in the courtroom. The pattern across the master hearings was unmistakable. In nearly every case, respondents were either pretermitted or pressured into accepting voluntary departure. Only two cases made it through to scheduling for individual hearings, and those individual hearings are now being set for October 2029 because of the backlog. That timeline cuts both ways. It puts the merits of these cases past the current administration, which is the upside. It also leaves respondents exposed to ICE detention for years in the interim, which is the danger. Court observation is part of how we document that danger and push back on it.
The Battle Buddies team also joined the New Sanctuary Coalition’s weekly pro se clinic at 55 West 15th Street in Manhattan. If you are in the New York City area and do not have legal representation, the clinic can help with forms, paperwork, and navigating the immigration legal process. Clinics run Wednesday evenings from 5:45 to 8 PM.
Our 100 percent no-detention record for Battle Buddies holds.
CONGRESS, POSTPONEMENTS AND A HEARING THAT MATTERS
The House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee hearing on 25 years in Afghanistan, with witnesses from SIGAR, has been postponed again. After moving from May 19 to June 24, it has now been pushed to after the August recess, with a working target of Tuesday, September 2. This is the second postponement in two months.
The hearing's framing is the 25-year arc since 9/11, but anyone watching knows that arc does not end at the war. It ends at the withdrawal, the broken promises, the people still at CAS, and the people receiving Chief of Mission revocations in the mail. We expect those topics to come up. We will be in the room when they do.
We will come back in August with more information. AfghanEvac will host a happy hour following the hearing, co-hosts and sponsors welcome, email shawn@afghanevac.org.
The hearings that matter this coming week are back-to-back. On Tuesday, June 2, Secretary Rubio testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. On Wednesday, June 3, he testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Two days, two committees, one Secretary, and the first major opportunity since the DRC plan collapsed for members of Congress to put him on the record about what comes next. We are working with offices on both sides of the aisle, in both chambers, to make sure the questions get asked. The three that matter most.
With the DRC scenario abandoned, what is the State Department’s plan for the 1,100 vetted Afghan allies at CAS, and on what timeline. Will the Department admit eligible CAS residents to the United States under USRAP or humanitarian parole.
How does the Department reconcile the new USCIS adjustment of status memo, which directs Afghan parolees to consular processing in their home country, with the fact that there is no U.S. consular presence in Afghanistan.
How does the Department intend to meet the monthly SIV processing benchmarks ordered by Judge Chutkan beginning in June.
If a senator on Foreign Relations or a representative on Foreign Affairs represents you, call before Monday. We have sent more than 30 documented communications to senior officials over 15 months. We have not had a principal-level meeting. The record speaks for itself. Postponement is not denial. It is delay. Delay is policy.
ON THE GROUND IN SAN DIEGO
San Diego carried a lot this week.
Standing with our Muslim neighbors. Before we get to anything else local, we hold the families and community of the Islamic Center of San Diego. On Monday, May 18, two teenage gunmen opened fire outside the largest mosque in San Diego County, killing Amin Abdullah, Mansour Kaziha, and Nader Awad. The three men gave their lives shielding worshippers and the 140 children inside the school next door. Authorities are investigating the attack as a hate crime. Our hearts are with the families. Our hearts are with Imam Taha Hassane and the entire Islamic Center community. And our gratitude is with the city of San Diego, which wrapped its arms around our Muslim neighbors in the days that followed, with hundreds gathering for an interfaith vigil at Lindbergh Park, faith leaders of every tradition standing beside Imam Hassane, and neighbors of every background showing up. That is the San Diego we know.
Hate does not stay in its lane. The logic that says one community is the threat is the same logic used to scapegoat Afghan allies, refugees, and immigrant families. We reject it wherever it appears, and we stand with every community in this city that has been told they do not belong.
Afghan Women and Girls Listening Session, Kunduz Kabob House. On Saturday, May 23, AfghanEvac and Second Families SD co-hosted a listening session for Afghan women and girls in the San Diego region. More than 60 women attended. The conversation was led in Pashto, Dari, and English. The room was theirs. We were there to listen. What we heard does not stay in the room. It travels with us to the Hill, to the press, and into the next round of policy fights. Thank you to Niamatullah B. Khan and Second Families SD, to Kunduz Kabob House, and to every woman and girl who came and spoke.
If you are an Afghan woman or girl and you want to be part of the next conversation, join our Women and Girls engagement list at afghanevac.org/women-and-girls. This list is for women and girls only.
Hazara Culture Day, Liberty Station. On Sunday, May 24, AfghanEvac was proud to stand with the Hazara community at Hazara Culture Day at Liberty Station. California Assemblymember Chris Ward, joined by Field Representative Michael Bravo, presented a Certificate of Recognition honoring California Hazaras. The Hazara community has carried generations of persecution in Afghanistan, most recently under the Taliban. Days like this are how a community insists on being seen and refuses to be reduced to a footnote.
In the Press
"Showing Up is the Love Language of Advocacy." A Conversation with Shawn VanDiver of #AfghanEvac — Austin Kocher
How the Trump administration is changing the green card application process — KCRA Sacramento
New rule requires most green-card applicants to apply from outside U.S. — Washington Post
Trump administration to force foreigners in the U.S. to apply for a green card abroad — NPR
Trump’s Green Card Changes Could Force Hundreds of Thousands to Leave U.S. — TIME
The country paused yesterday to honor the fallen. Today, we get back to the work they would expect of us.
More than 1,100 vetted Afghan allies are still inside a camp we built, waiting for a destination the United States owes them and that is now, finally, back on the drawing board.
Tens of thousands more, already here and already vetted, woke up last week to a memo telling them the green card they were eligible for is now an act of grace.
Hundreds more are receiving letters revoking the Chief of Mission approval that anchors their legal pathway.
In San Diego this past weekend, Afghan women, girls, and Hazara families showed up for each other and asked us to keep showing up for them.
We will.
America made a promise.
We are not asking. We are reminding the people who made it that the deadline for keeping it is now.
We are furious. We are focused. And we are not going anywhere.