‘One hell after another’: US travel ban deepens despair for Afghans awaiting visas

Afghans walk after their arrival from Pakistan, in Takhta Pul, Afghanistan, on June 4, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 06 June 2025
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‘One hell after another’: US travel ban deepens despair for Afghans awaiting visas

  • Trump’s sweeping new travel ban on 12 countries, including Afghanistan, will go into effect from Monday
  • Thousands of Afghans have applied for visas to settle in US, either as refugees or under Special Immigrant Visa program 

KABUL: Mehria had been losing hope of getting a visa to emigrate to the United States but her spirits were crushed when President Donald Trump raised yet another hurdle by banning travel for Afghans.

Trump had already disrupted refugee pathways after he returned to power in January but a sweeping new travel ban on 12 countries, including Afghanistan, will go into effect on Monday.

The ban changes little for most Afghans who already faced steep barriers to travel abroad, but many who had hung their hopes on a new life in the United States felt it was yet another betrayal.

“Trump’s recent decisions have trapped not only me but thousands of families in uncertainty, hopelessness and thousands of other disasters,” Mehria, a 23-year-old woman who gave only one name, said from Pakistan, where she has been waiting since applying for a US refugee visa in 2022.

“We gave up thousands of hopes and our entire lives and came here on a promise from America, but today we are suffering one hell after another,” she told AFP.

The United States has not had a working embassy in Afghanistan since the Taliban ousted the foreign-backed government in 2021, forcing Afghans to apply for visas in third countries.

The Taliban’s return followed the drawdown of US and NATO troops who had ousted them two decades earlier in response to the September 11, 2001, attacks.

The Taliban government has since imposed a strict view of Islamic law and severe restrictions on women, including bans on some education and work.

Hundreds of thousands of Afghans have applied for visas to settle in the United States, either as refugees or under the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program reserved for those who aided the US government during its war against the Taliban.

Afghans with SIV visas and asylum cases will not be affected by Trump’s new order but family reunification pathways are threatened, the Afghan-American Foundation said in a statement condemning the ban.

Some 12,000 people are awaiting reunification with family members already living in the United States, according to Shawn VanDiver, the president of the AfghanEvac non-profit group.

“These are not ‘border issues’. These are legal, vetted, documented reunifications,” he wrote on social media platform X. “Without exemptions, families are stranded.”

Refugee pathways and relocation processes for resettling Afghans had already been upset by previous Trump orders, suddenly leaving many Afghans primed to travel to the United States in limbo.

The Trump administration revoked legal protections temporarily shielding Afghans from deportation in May, citing an improved security situation in Afghanistan.

“We feel abandoned by the United States, with whom we once worked and cooperated,” said Zainab Haidari, another Afghan woman who has been waiting in Pakistan for a refugee visa.

“Despite promises of protection and refuge we are now caught in a hopeless situation, between the risk of death from the Taliban and the pressure and threat of deportation in Pakistan,” said Haidari, 27, who worked with the United States in Kabul during the war but applied for a refugee visa.

Afghans fled in droves during decades of conflict, but the chaotic withdrawal of US-led troops from Kabul saw a new wave clamouring to escape Taliban government curbs and fears of reprisal for working with Washington.

Pakistan and Iran have meanwhile ramped up deportation campaigns to expel Afghans who have crossed their borders.

The Taliban authorities have not responded to multiple requests for comment on the new travel ban but have said they are keen to have good relations with every country now that they are in power — including the United States.

Visa options for Afghans are already severely limited by carrying the weakest passport globally, according to the Henley Passport Index.

However, travel to the United States is far from the minds of many Afghans who struggle to make ends meet in one of the world’s poorest countries, where food insecurity is rife.

“We don’t even have bread, why are you asking me about traveling to America?” said one Afghan man in Kabul.

Sahar, a 29-year-old economics graduate who has struggled to find work amid sky-high unemployment, said the new rules will not have any impact on most Afghans.

“When there are thousands of serious issues in Afghanistan, this won’t change anything,” she told AFP.

“Those who could afford to travel and apply for the visa will find another way or to go somewhere else instead of the US.”


Hotels and homes evacuated on Greek island of Crete as wildfire burns out of control

Updated 8 sec ago
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Hotels and homes evacuated on Greek island of Crete as wildfire burns out of control

ATHENS, Greece: A fast-moving wildfire whipped by gale-force winds burned through the night and into Thursday on Greece’s southern island of Crete, prompting the evacuation of more than 1,500 people from hotels and homes.
The fire department said 230 firefighters backed up by 10 water-dropping aircraft were battling the flames, which have burned through forest and farmland in Crete’s Ierapetra area on the island’s southern coast. Two people were evacuated by boat overnight, while six private boats were on standby in case further evacuations by sea became necessary, the coast guard said.
Homes were reported damaged as flames swept through hillside forests, fanned by strong winds.
“It’s a very difficult situation. The fire is very hard to contain. Right now, they cannot contain it,” Nektarios Papadakis, a civil protection official at the regional authority, told The Associated Press overnight.
“The tourists who were moved out are all okay. They have been taken to an indoor basketball arena and hotels in other regions of the island,” he said.
The Fire Service and a civil protection agency issued mobile phone alerts for the evacuations and appealed to residents not to return to try to save their property.
As fires crested ridgelines and edged toward residential areas, the blaze sent clouds of ash into the night sky, illuminated by the headlights of emergency vehicles and water trucks that lined the coastal road near the resorts of Ferma and Achlia on the southeast of Crete.
Several residents were treated for breathing difficulties, officials said, but there were no immediate reports of serious injuries.
Crete is one of Greece’s most popular destinations for both foreign and domestic tourists.
The risk of wildfires remained very high across Crete and parts of southern Greece Thursday, according to a daily bulletin issued by the Fire Service.
Wildfires are frequent in the country during its hot, dry summers, and the fire department has already tackled dozens across Greece so far this year.
In 2018, a massive fire swept through the seaside town of Mati, east of Athens, trapping people in their homes and on roads as they tried to flee. More than 100 died, including some who drowned while trying to swim away from the flames.

Ryanair cancels 170 flights due to French air traffic controllers strikes

Updated 29 min 4 sec ago
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Ryanair cancels 170 flights due to French air traffic controllers strikes

Ryanair said it was forced to cancel 170 flights affecting over 30,000 passengers due to a national strike by air traffic controllers in France, planned on Thursday and Friday.
“In addition to flights to/from France being canceled, this strike will also affect all French overflights,” the Irish airline said in a statement.

Thailand set for another acting PM after cabinet reshuffle

Updated 03 July 2025
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Thailand set for another acting PM after cabinet reshuffle

  • Power passed to transport minister and deputy prime minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit who took office for only one full day
  • The revolving door of leadership comes as the kingdom is battling to revive a spluttering economy and secure a US trade deal averting President Donald Trump’s looming threat of a 36 percent tariff

Bangkok: Thailand’s king is scheduled Thursday to swear in a new cabinet in a reshuffle that will see a third person in a week take on the role as the country’s prime minister.

The Southeast Asian nation’s top office was plunged into turmoil on Tuesday when the Constitutional Court suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra pending an ethics probe which could take months.

Power passed to transport minister and deputy prime minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit who took office for only one full day, as the bombshell was dropped in an awkward interim ahead of the reshuffle.

When former defense minister Phumtham Wechayachai is sworn into his new position as interior minister he will also take on a deputy prime minister role outranking Suriya’s — thus becoming the acting premier.

Before Paetongtarn was ousted she assigned herself the role of culture minister in the new cabinet, meaning she is set to keep a perch in the upper echelons of power.

She arrived at the Government House on Thursday morning for a group portrait before heading to the Grand Palace to meet King Maha Vajiralongkorn for the closed-door oath-taking.

The newly-appointed cabinet is set to hold its first meeting Thursday afternoon, with a royal statement expected in the evening.

The revolving door of leadership comes as the kingdom is battling to revive a spluttering economy and secure a US trade deal averting President Donald Trump’s looming threat of a 36 percent tariff.

Phumtham is considered a loyal lieutenant to the suspended Paetongtarn and her father Thaksin Shinawatra, the powerful patriarch of a dynasty which has dominated Thai 21st-century politics.

Thaksin-linked parties have been jousting with the pro-military, pro-conservative establishment since the early 2000s, but analysts say the family’s political brand has now entered decline.

The 71-year-old Phumtham earned the nickname “Big Comrade” for his association with a left-wing youth movement of the 1970s, but transitioned to politics through a role in Thaksin’s telecoms empire.

In previous cabinets he held the defense and commerce portfolios, and spent a spell as acting prime minister after a crisis engulfed the top office last year.

Paetongtarn has been hobbled over a longstanding territorial dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, which boiled over into cross-border clashes in May, killing one Cambodian soldier.

When she made a diplomatic call to Cambodian ex-leader Hun Sen, she called him “uncle” and referred to a Thai military commander as her “opponent,” according to a leaked recording causing widespread backlash.

A conservative party abandoned her ruling coalition — sparking the cabinet reshuffle — accusing her of kowtowing to Cambodia and undermining the military.

The Constitutional Court said there was “sufficient cause to suspect” Paetongtarn breached ministerial ethics in the diplomatic spat.
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South Korea’s leader says trade deal with US remains unclear ahead of Trump’s deadline

Updated 03 July 2025
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South Korea’s leader says trade deal with US remains unclear ahead of Trump’s deadline

  • Lee said the tariff negotiations with the US have been “clearly not easy”
  • Trump’s 90-day pause in global reciprocal tariffs is set to expire on July 9, potentially exposing South Korean products to 25 percent tax rates

SEOUL, South Korea: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said that it remained unclear whether Seoul and Washington could conclude their tariff negotiations by the deadline set by President Donald Trump for next week, noting Thursday that both nations were still working to clarify their positions and identify areas of agreement.

Speaking at his first news conference since taking office last month, Lee also reiterated his intentions to improve badly frayed ties with North Korea, though he acknowledged that mutual distrust between the Koreas is too deep to heal anytime soon.

Trump’s tariff hikes and other “America First” policies are major challenges for Lee’s month-old government, as are North Korea’s expanding nuclear program and domestic economic woes. Lee, a liberal, came to power after winning a snap presidential election caused by the ouster of conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol over his ill-fated imposition of martial law in December.

Lee said the tariff negotiations with the US have been “clearly not easy” and stressed that the countries must reach mutually beneficial outcomes.

“It’s difficult to say with certainty whether we will be able to reach a conclusion by July 8. We are now doing our best,” Lee said. ”What we need is a truly reciprocal outcome that benefits both sides and works for everyone, but so far, both sides are still trying to define exactly what they want.”

Trump’s 90-day pause in global reciprocal tariffs is set to expire on July 9, potentially exposing South Korean products to 25 percent tax rates.

Washington has separately been seeking higher duties on specific products such as automobiles and semiconductors, which are key exports for South Korea’s trade-dependent economy. There are growing concerns in Seoul that Trump may also demand a broader deal requiring South Korea to pay significantly more for the 28,000 US troops stationed on the peninsula to deter North Korean threats.

Lee has consistently urged patience on tariffs, arguing that rushing to secure an early deal would not serve the national interest. His trade minister, Yeo Han-koo, was reportedly arranging a visit to Washington for possible meetings with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

On North Korea, Lee said he would seek to restore long-dormant talks with North Korea, whose expanding military cooperation with Russia pose major security concerns to their neighbors.

“I think we should improve relations with North Korea based on a reliable coordination and consultation between South Korea and the US,” Lee said. “But I expect that won’t be easy as mutual antagonism and distrust are too serious.”

Lee previously faced criticism that he was tilting toward North Korea and China and away from the US and Japan. But since the election, Lee has repeatedly vowed pragmatic diplomacy, saying he would bolster the alliance with the US while also seeking to repair ties with North Korea, China and Russia. Some critics say it’s too difficult to satisfy all parties.

Lee’s government has made proactive efforts to build trust with North Korea, halting frontline anti-Pyongyang propaganda broadcasts and taking steps to ban activists from flying balloons carrying propaganda leaflets across the border.

North Korea hasn’t publicly responded to the conciliatory gestures by Trump and Lee, but officials said North Korean propaganda broadcasts have since been unheard in South Korean border towns.

Lee said he’s been talking with his presidential security and intelligence officials about how to revive talks with North Korea but didn’t elaborate.

Trump has also expressed intent to resume diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Lee has said he would support Trump’s push.

North Korea has refused talks with the US and South Korea since earlier Trump-Kim nuclear talks collapsed in 2019. North Korea is now pursuing relations with Russia, supplying troops and weapons to support its war against Ukraine in return for economic and military assistance.


Ukrainian drone attack kills one in Russia’s Lipetsk, regional governor says

Updated 03 July 2025
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Ukrainian drone attack kills one in Russia’s Lipetsk, regional governor says

  • The debris fell on a residential building in the district surrounding the regional capital

A woman in her 70s was killed, and two other people injured, by falling debris from a destroyed Ukrainian drone in Russia’s southwestern region of Lipetsk, regional governor Igor Artamonov said early on Thursday.

The debris fell on a residential building in the district surrounding the regional capital, killing the woman and injuring two more, Artamonov said on the Telegram messaging app.

“Signals about falling debris are coming from various areas,” Artamonov added. “Rescue services and emergency agencies are working in an enhanced mode.”

The Russian defense ministry said that it destroyed 10 Ukrainian drones overnight over the Lipetsk region and 69 in total over Russian territory and the Crimean Peninsula. The ministry reports only how many drones its forces destroy, not how many Ukraine launches.

Artamonov said in another post that an apartment building under construction in the city of Yelets in the Lipetsk region was damaged as result of an attack and that a small fire broke out at a nearby parking lot.

The full damage were not immediately known. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine about the attack.

Both sides deny targeting civilians in their strikes during the war that Russia launched against Ukraine more than three years ago. But thousands of civilians have died in the conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainian.

Ukraine has launched multiple air strikes into Lipetsk, a strategically important region with an air base that is the chief training center for the Russian Aerospace Forces.

Kyiv has been attacking Russian air bases to reduce Moscow’s ability to use its warplanes to strike targets in Ukraine and hammer front lines with guided bombs and missiles. In August, the Ukrainian military said it had hit the Lipetsk airfield, damaging stockpiles of guided bombs and causing a series of explosions.