Categories: World

US Senators urge emergency refugees protection for Afghan Sikhs, Hindus

Twenty US Senators have urged President Donald Trump's administration to grant emergency refugee protections to Sikh and Hindu communities in Afghanistan facing persecution as religious minorities.

In a bipartisan letter addressed to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the Senators, led by New Jersey Democrat Bob Menendez, a ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called on the State Department to prioritize resettlement opportunities under the US Refugee Admissions Program allocation ceilings for Afghan Sikh and Hindu communities

According to the letter on Friday, the population of the two communities have plummeted markedly due to years of persecution by the Taliban and more recent terrorist actions perpetrated by the Islamic State Khorasan (IS-K).

"This administration has repeatedly highlighted protecting religious freedom as a top foreign policy priority," the Senators wrote.

"Sikh and Hindu communities in Afghanistan face an existential threat from IS-K because of their religion.

"To protect religious freedom, we urgently ask that you take these essential steps to defend these threatened religious minorities," they added.

The letter also called on Pompeo to offer additional support to members of the Sikh and Hindu communities that choose to remain in Afghanistan, and to ensure that Afghan religious minorities benefit from the $20.6 million in American aid already provided to address COVID-19.

"Ensuring that religious minorities receive US COVID-19 assistance should be a priority in all countries where protection of religious minorities is a challenge," the Senators added..

IANS

Recent Posts

Uganda gears up to roll out Aadhaar-like ID system, eyes UPI adoption

By Vishu Adhana Uganda is set to roll out an Aadhaar-like digital identification system based…

5 hours ago

Tibet activists demand full investigation following suspicious death of Tibetan leader in Vietnam

Global Tibet advocacy groups have voiced serious concern and are urging a full and transparent…

5 hours ago

BYC calls for mass demonstrations against state crackdown across Balochistan

A wave of protest demonstrations and sit-ins is set to sweep across Balochistan on Sunday,…

6 hours ago

“Operations will go on until terrorists are eliminated”: Army on ongoing encounter with terrorists in J-K

Amid the ongoing operations and terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, the Indian Army on…

8 hours ago

“EU has tools to respond to trade war, preparing toolbox for several months”: Carnegie Europe Director Rosa Balfour

Carnegie Europe Director Rosa Balfour said that the European Union has the tools to respond…

8 hours ago

India highlights BioE3 Policy at Mission Innovation Annual Gathering 2025 in Seoul

The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) co-leads the Mission Integrated Biorefinery jointly with the Netherlands as…

10 hours ago