Qatar Urges US To Transfer Afghan Migrants From Doha Camp

Qatar has urged the United States to resolve the status of Afghan migrants housed at the Al-Sailiya camp near Doha by September 2026 under a temporary hosting agreement between the two countries. A diplomatic document released by the U.S. State Department showed that Washington and Doha had previously agreed the Afghan migrants could remain at the camp until late 2026 while awaiting resettlement. More than 1,100 Afghans evacuated after the Taliban's return to power in 2021 are currently living at the facility, according to the documents. The issue has sparked renewed debate following reports that the Trump administration explored relocating some Afghan evacuees from Qatar to the Republic of Congo. Several U.S. senators strongly criticized the idea, arguing that Afghan allies who supported the United States during the war should not face transfer to another unstable environment or be forced to return to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. Following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, tens of thousands of Afghans were evacuated to temporary transit centers in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and other countries while awaiting immigration processing. Many Afghan evacuees have faced lengthy delays in resettlement because of security screenings, visa backlogs and changes in U.S. immigration and refugee policies in recent years.