Jordan will only be transit point for Afghan evacuees on their way to US
Amman
Afghan citizens coming to Jordan will not be granted “refugee status” and will stay for a short period before their planned resettlement in the US, a senior official said on Wednesday.
The Jordanian Foreign Ministry announced on Monday that Jordan has agreed to the transit of 2,500 Afghan citizens through its territory on their way to the US.
The ministry said the decision was made for humanitarian reasons to help alleviate the repercussions of the crisis in Afghanistan.
In remarks to Arab News, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Deifallah Al-Fayez said that Jordan, under an agreement with the US, will have no commitments toward the Afghan citizens. “The Afghan citizens will not be granted any refugee status. They will stay in Jordan for a very short time until the procedures related to their resettlement in the US are completed,” he said.
Asked whether the Afghans have arrived in the country, Al-Fayez would not comment: “All I can say is that the Afghan citizens will be sheltered in closed areas and will stay there for a very short period.”
Another official, who preferred anonymity, said that the 2,500 Afghan citizens have already arrived in Jordan aboard a US military evacuation flight and have been sheltered near an air force base in the northeastern desert.
Deputy Prime Minister Tawfiq Kreishan said: “They will not be resettled in Jordan and all has been arranged with the concerned sides to transport them via the Queen Alia International Airport.”