DAD’S PLEA FOR FAMILY IN TALIBAN FEARS
‘TERRIFIED’ SUNNY’S BID TO BRING WIFE AND BABY HOME
AN Afghan refugee living in Bristol has launched an urgent appeal to rescue his family from Afghanistan after Taliban militants stormed their home in Kabul.
Sunny Shah, 27, has set up a JustGiving page in a bid to raise £8,200 to cover Home Office and solicitors’ fees required to process his family’s visa applications, and bring his loved ones to the UK, including his two-month-old daughter, whom he is yet to meet.
Sunny’s 51-year-old mother was visited twice by the extremist group in their family home in Afghanistan, and was threatened to reveal the whereabouts of Sunny’s wife who is currently in hiding, having received an education from the American University in Afghanistan.
It comes after the Taliban took control of the country in August, and have since been accused of conducting an aggressive campaign, killing and torturing educated women and Afghan citizens who assisted western forces over the past two decades.
Sunny wrote on his JustGiving page: “Since the Taliban took control, I am terrified of what might happen to my wife and daughter, and I am desperate to get them through the Home Office process as quickly as possible, so they can escape the horror of daily life in Afghanistan.”
“Life for women and girls will be very bleak and without me there to protect them, I am worried their lives are in imminent danger.”
Sunny had included a picture of his wife on the fundraising website, but has since deleted it in fear that members of the Taliban might see it, recognise her and target her for reprisal.
Sunny’s 24-year-old wife has been contacted multiple times by the Taliban on her phone after they seized all students’ personal information from the American University computers.
His younger brother is also in hiding and fears reprisals from the Taliban because of his criticism of the extremist group on social media.
Sunny’s wife and two-month-old daughter were originally scheduled to board a flight from Kabul to Bahrain on Thursday, August 26, but were instead left stranded in the country after Islamic State affiliate, ISIS-K, detonated explosions at Kabul Airport, killing 13 US troops and dozens of Afghans.
The pair married in August 2019, and Sunny, who was already living and working in Bristol, began the application through the Home Office to bring his wife and children over to the UK.
As part of the Home Office’s requirement for a visa Sunny’s wife was told she would have to pass a level B1 English requirement, which she did at the end of last year.
The family had been waiting for the visa application to be processed but since the Taliban took over the country last month, Sunny now wants to get them out of the country as quickly as possible.
A government spokesperson said: “The UK’s evacuation operation helped over 15,000 people to safety including British nationals, Afghan interpreters, and other vulnerable people.
“While the success of that operation exceeded our assumptions, we know that there are many left in difficult circumstances.
“That is why our utmost priority is to continue to work with allies and partners in the region to ensure safe passage for those who want to leave Afghanistan.
“At the same time, we are also establishing the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme to help those most at risk. This complements our existing ARAP scheme which has already supported thousands of Afghans start their new life in the UK.”
Sunny, a father of three who works in Bristol city centre as a security guard, set up the fundraising page as he fears his salary alone will not raise the required funds in time.
He explained: “It is very difficult for me because it would take six or seven months to get this money. By then, my wife may have died.”
Sunny has experienced the Taliban’s violence first-hand as his own father was killed in Afghanistan in 2011 for working with US forces as a chef.
He particularly fears for the women in his family who remain targets in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
Sunny moved to the UK in 2012 and has been granted refugee status having lived in England for more than five years.
He hopes to bring his family safely to the UK so that his daughters can be educated and his whole family can live free of fear.
He said: “My daughter is two months old and I want to meet her, I want to see her.
“Her future is bright here but in Afghanistan, it is not.”
With daily reports of the Taliban moving door-to-door in search of women and those who worked for their ‘enemies,’ Sunny recognises the urgency of the situation.
He said: “Now with the Taliban coming, I don’t know what is next.”
To donate to Sunny Shah’s fundraiser visit justgiving.com/crowdfunding/sunny-shah