British government discloses employment of numerous Afghan local troops due to data revelations - Thousands of Afghans have been admitted by the British government.
In a shocking revelation, the British Defense Minister Ben Wallace has apologized for a data breach involving the sensitive information of thousands of Afghan individuals who were part of a secret humanitarian program. The program, known as the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), was designed to provide a route to safety for Afghans at risk due to their assistance to the UK efforts in Afghanistan or their vulnerable status.
The ACRS was initiated post-August 2021, following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. The scheme prioritized individuals who supported UK values such as democracy, women's rights, and freedom of speech. It admitted 600 additional locals and their family members, in addition to the 4,500 already admitted, bringing the total to 6,900. These individuals were already included in the official figure of 36,000 Afghan admissions since the Taliban takeover in August 2021.
The data disclosure included the names and contact details of the affected individuals. Wallace apologized, stating, "This data breach should never have happened." He was informed about the program in December 2023 but was unable to speak about it due to a court order. A British court lifted the gag order before Wallace's revelation in Parliament.
The media was prohibited from reporting on the data leak, with British media outlets reporting it as the longest such gag order in the country's history and the first time a British government had taken such restrictive measures against the British press. The Labour Party's ministers decided not to inform MPs about the data incident upon taking power in July 2024, citing the risk of increased attention leading to Taliban access.
The leak put human lives at risk, as explained by Wallace. He advocated for a review of the program, which found that the Taliban had a "very low intention" of taking reprisals. The cost of the program is estimated to reach £850 million by its completion.
The ACRS was part of a wider UK government effort to provide legal routes to protection in line with its immigration policies. It was embedded within broader immigration reforms, including changes to citizenship residency requirements and entry criteria. As of July 1, 2025, the ACRS is closed to new referrals, with no more applications accepted for resettlement through the scheme. However, relocation operations for already accepted eligible individuals continue.
The NATO-led mission in Afghanistan ended abruptly in August 2021, leaving thousands of Afghan locals at risk after the Taliban takeover. The Conservative government launched a program to admit those most at risk of Taliban reprisals. Under the ACRS, resettlement was contingent on thorough security screening, including biometric checks and vetting against databases to exclude individuals linked to war crimes, terrorism, or other serious crimes. Those admitted under the Afghanistan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP), related to or feeding into the ACRS, could apply for British citizenship after five years following existing rules, subject to fees.
For Afghan nationals already in the UK under various visas whose status might expire soon, the government introduced concessions similar to those granted to Syrians in 2015. Some document requirements were waived, and switching to routes like Skilled Worker or Student was allowed without leaving the UK, provided the individual arrived before September 1, 2021.
The ACRS represents the UK government's secretive yet humanitarian effort to admit Afghan local staff and vulnerable people affected by the Afghanistan conflict, with a carefully controlled process ending new intake by mid-2025.
- The revelation of the recording of thousands of Afghan troops comes amidst a backdrop of general news, including politics, war-and-conflicts, and crime-and-justice, adding another layer of complexity to the ongoing migration crisis in Afghanistan.
- The closure of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), responsible for the resettlement of thousands of Afghans, has led to discussions about migration policies, contributing to the broader debates on immigration reform in the UK.
- Despite the completion of the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan and the closure of the ACRS, concerns regarding the safety and well-being of those Afghan individuals who remain in the country persist, highlighting the need for continued attention to war-and-conflicts and general news issues.
