UK pauses expulsion of Nepalese guards rescued from Kabul

The UK has paused the expulsion of a group of Nepalese military veterans who worked at the British embassy in Kabul before being rescued when the Taliban rulers took over Afghanistan.

Thirteen of the former Gurkha soldiers worked as guards at the high-security compound housing the UK and Canadian embassies in Kabul, and have been living in the UK since the 2021 regime change.

Ten of them were last week detained in handcuffs following a raid on their west London hotel, where they had been living and working as cooks for Afghan refugees staying there.

Immigration officials served them with papers ordering their removal to Nepal and India, but the government said on Thursday (6) that the operation had now been halted.

"Removal of this cohort has been paused, pending further review," the Home Office said.

The Gurkhas have earned a reputation for fierce fighting, loyalty and bravery since they first served as part of the Indian army in British-ruled India in 1815.

Around 200,000 have fought alongside British troops in both world wars, as well as the conflicts in the Falklands, Iraq and Afghanistan.

There are around 2,700 currently enlisted in Britain's armed forces.

A lawyer for some of the group, Jamie Bell, said he was "delighted" by the decision, but added "the men have been offered no assurances that they will be given leave to remain.

"All 10 of them remain in detention. The Home Office should have to answer for the way they have treated these men," he said.

The UK has taken in 25,000 people from Afghanistan under two resettlement schemes set up in the wake of the Taliban takeover.

One focuses on women, children and religious minorities - the scheme under which the Nepalese men's asylum claims were being processed - and the other on Afghans who worked for the British military and government.

(AFP)