{"id":5677,"date":"2026-04-04T06:56:06","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T06:56:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/5677\/"},"modified":"2026-04-04T06:56:06","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T06:56:06","slug":"i-fled-the-taliban-for-britain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/5677\/","title":{"rendered":"I fled the Taliban for Britain"},"content":{"rendered":"

An Afghan refugee in Britain whose brothers are still living in fear of the Taliban<\/a> regime in Afghanistan has condemned the UK Government\u2019s \u201cbetrayal\u201d after the Home Office blocked all study and work visas for everyone from the country.<\/p>\n

Maiwand Ahmadi Martindale, now 19, was brought over to the UK in 2024 under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap), after he and his family spent two years hiding from the Taliban following its recapture of his home country in August 2021.<\/p>\n

His father, Daud Ahmadi, worked closely with the British government and was spokesman for the governor in Helmand from 2008 to 2012, while the province was under British military control. Ahmadi met prime ministers Gordon Brown and David Cameron during his time in post.<\/p>\n

His brothers have been denied entry under the Arap scheme, despite their father having collaborated with British forces, as they were above the age of 18.<\/p>\n

New FeatureIn ShortQuick Stories. Same trusted journalism.<\/p>\n

Ahmadi Martindale, who is studying at a college in central London, said he felt lucky to be doing so, but feared that many of his friends back in Afghanistan would never get the same opportunity.<\/p>\n

The government scheme, launched in April 2021 before the country was retaken by the Taliban, relocates Afghan citizens who worked for or assisted the British government in Afghanistan and now face threats to their life as a result.<\/p>\n

Arap and its civilian equivalent, the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), were both closed to new applications in last July. Following the evacuation of Afghanistan in 2021, it is estimated that approximately 23,000 people arrived in the UK under the schemes as of February this year<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Shabana Mahmood, the Home Secretary, has since also announced she was suspending all new student visas for nationals from Afghanistan, as well as halting all skilled worker visas for anyone from the country.<\/p>\n

Mahmood said she was \u201ctaking the unprecedented decision to refuse visas for those nationals seeking to exploit our generosity\u201d, claiming that there was widespread \u201cvisa abuse\u201d. She said many sought asylum once their student visas had expired.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s insulting\u2019 <\/p>\n

\u201cThey are insulting Afghans, calling us bad people, saying we should be sent back. It\u2019s really painful to hear,\u201d said Ahmadi Martindale, who recalls the 10 years of bombing and killing he witnessed back in Helmand.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you left the house, you wouldn\u2019t know if you were coming back,\u201d the teenage refugee told The i Paper. \u201cI had 20 friends die in the war.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the British Army was in Afghanistan, we had a lot of respect for Great Britain, but now we feel like we\u2019ve been betrayed. You work with someone, you trust them, and then after they just abandon you, and don\u2019t listen to you,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Helmand, where Ahmadi Martindale grew up, was considered to be Afghanistan\u2019s most dangerous province during the war, where hundreds of British soldiers were killed, as well as thousands of Afghan civilians.<\/p>\n

When allied forces withdrew in 2021, it took only 10 days for the Taliban to retake the country. In the disruption, Ahmadi Martindale and his family could not make it onto an emergency flight, and, like many of those who had worked with the UK or US military, were forced into hiding. They only left the house in disguise or in the dark, Ahmadi Martindale said.<\/p>\n

\"\"Ahmadi Martindale\u2019s father, Daud, second from right, worked with the British government and with former prime minister David Cameron<\/p>\n

Two years later, after a successful Arap application, Ahmadi Martindale boarded a flight from the Afghan capital, Kabul, with his parents and his three younger siblings, who were, like him, under the age of 18.<\/p>\n

But the teenager\u2019s two older brothers in their twenties, were barred from coming to the UK and had to stay in their home town in the Kandahar region. They continue to live hiding from the Taliban, who say they are in \u201cserious pursuit\u201d of the Ahmadi family.<\/p>\n

\u2018I was lucky\u2019<\/p>\n

The brothers claim to have been previously captured and tortured by the security arm before being let go, but fear what could happen if they are found again. <\/p>\n

Ahmadi Martindale said: \u201cIf it were different, I would be there with them, struggling, hiding. I was lucky to be a child. I am safe, but when your family is going through a hard situation, it is very hard. You don\u2019t feel safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cA lot of Afghans feel safe here but they are not happy. They are stressed. They\u2019ve left their families back home. We just want the people who have stood with you shoulder to shoulder, please listen to them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ban on student visas has come as a particular blow to girls and women who, under the Taliban regime, are no longer allowed to go to school past the age of 12, or even travel without a male guardian. For many, getting a scholarship or an opportunity abroad is their only means of securing an education and future.<\/p>\n

\"EDITORSBritish forces assisted the evacuation of Afghans during Operation Pitting in Kabul (Photo: LPhot Ben Shread\/MoD\/PA)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe girls have made a huge sacrifice. They are not allowed education or freedom. Shabana Mahmood knows the situation in Afghanistan, she is from Pakistan, we are neighbours. She knows that the Taliban is closing everything for girls, and now she is banning the visas,\u201d said Ahmadi Martindale.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany girls are waiting were waiting for the student visas to come and achieve their dreams. They can\u2019t achieve their dreams in their homes, and now they can\u2019t come to the UK. We want a bright future for our sisters.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dozens of Labour MPs have opposed the Government\u2019s immigration reforms, which extend far beyond student visas. The Home Secretary says she wants to double the length of time it takes for migrants to gain indefinite leave to remain, a move that Labour\u2019s former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner described this week as \u201cun-British\u201d.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the MoD said: \u201cWhilst we can\u2019t comment on individual cases, we remain absolutely committed to the promises we have made to our Afghan friends and allies \u2013 including relocating eligible Afghans to the UK. <\/p>\n

\u201cEligible Afghans are continuing to be relocated to the UK once they receive UK visas and we are still aiming for all Afghan Resettlement Program eligible people who wish to relocate to the UK to do so during this Parliament.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"An Afghan refugee in Britain whose brothers are still living in fear of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5678,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[1080,13,1766,284,3150,3151],"class_list":{"0":"post-5677","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-britain","8":"tag-afghanistan","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-home-office","11":"tag-immigration","12":"tag-taliban","13":"tag-visas"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@UnitedKingdom\/116345135606777067","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}