President Joe Biden's administration announced on Wednesday, November 17, that it has stopped housing evacuated Afghans at one of the military sites that has housed them since the summer, arguing that it is due to the increased pace of their resettlement in the United States.
More than 25,000 Afghans have been able to leave military installations since the Taliban seized power in their homeland. The resettlement process has served as an opportunity for Afghans to start a new life, in addition to providing them with relocation to the United States, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
As of November 17, approximately 45,000 evacuees from Afghanistan remained in temporary accommodation at seven military installations: Indiana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Although the government has not provided a deadline for the relocation of all those evacuated from the temporary military bases, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told Congress on Tuesday, November 16, that the goal is to complete the resettlement between December and February.