Afghans sick of staying in UK hotels and beg to go back home
AFGHANS who fled here to escape the Taliban have begged to go back home.
The refugees say they are sick of staying in emergency hotel accommodation as they wait for a permanent home.
One Afghan GP, who fled to Britain in 2000, said: “I’ve had a few patients telling me they want to go home.
“One guy, who was 67, kept saying: ‘I can’t take this anymore. I have to get out of this hotel room.’ Another refugee told the doctor: “I just want my freedom from the hotel.”
The refugee and his wife were so distraught they had to be put on medication.
New arrivals are poised to abandon resettlement scheme Operation Warm Welcome, which launched in August. The scheme, run by minister Victoria Atkins, aims to ensure all Afghans arriving get the necessary support.
Concerns have also been raised over healthcare for those who flew in after the evacuation from Kabul airport.
Danny Thorpe, a councillor from Greenwich, South London, called the programme a “shocking failure”. He claimed the lack of government support when 700 Afghans arrived in the borough was unforgivable, adding: “There was a mismatch between rhetoric and action.”
A Home Office spokesman said: “Hotels remain a temporary measure to help accommodate those we brought here. It is going to take time to find permanent homes for everyone but we are working urgently with our partners to do so.
“Our aim is to support everyone who is resettled here to build a successful life.”
