When Afghanistan fell to the Taliban in 2021, hundreds of thousands of refugees fled across the border to neighboring Pakistan, seeking safety away from the radical Islamist group.

Afghan nationals who had worked with the United States or NATO forces were particularly fearful of reprisals from the Taliban. Promised resettlement in the US, many traveled to Pakistan to await American visas. Khalili and her family were among them.

Now they fear they’ll be deported back to Afghanistan, following US President Donald Trump’s order to suspend the US Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), effectively locking out refugees worldwide who had been on a pathway to US resettlement.

Soon after the executive order was signed, Pakistan’s Prime Minister’s Office drafted a three-stage repatriation plan for “Afghan nationals bound for 3rd country resettlement.”

The document calls for foreign missions to coordinate the relocation of Afghan nationals out of the capital Islamabad and its twin garrison city of Rawalpindi by March 31, 2025.

If they’re not removed by that date, they will be “repatriated to Afghanistan.”