An Afghan war hero threatened with deportation to Rwanda has exposed a "gaping hole" in our asylum system, senior figures warned yesterday, as they called for Britain to fulfil its "duty" to those who served alongside coalition forces.
The Independent revealed this week that the pilot was forced to flee Afghanistan - leaving his young family - and travel to the UK on a small boat because he could find no safe and legal route out of the country.
Chair of the defence select committee Tobias Ellwood said the case shows there is "no functioning process" that allows Afghans to apply for asylum from abroad, adding: "This is clearly not who we are as a nation."
Admiral Lord West, former head of the Royal Navy, added to the criticism, saying the government has a "duty" to look after those who fought alongside Britain.
Last night, Rishi Sunak promised to review the veteran's plight after he was questioned about The Independent's story during a grilling by MPs.
The pilot, who flew 30 combat missions against the Taliban and was praised by his coalition forces supervisor as a "patriot to his nation", claims he has been "forgotten" by US and British forces.
Tory MP Mr Ellwood told The Independent: "This case illustrates the gaping hole in the current system - there is no functioning process that allows Afghans to apply for asylum from abroad and there is something very wrong if pilots who worked alongside us in Afghanistan could now be sent to Rwanda."
He also called for the government to look at the case, saying: "This is clearly not who we are as a nation, and is not how our migration system should operate.
"I hope the government will look at this case specifically and address the wider issue of how an Afghan [who supported UK armed forces] can safely apply for asylum in the UK."
この記事は The Independent の March 29, 2023 版に掲載されています。
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7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
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