A health worker gives a dose of the polio vaccine to a child during a vaccination campaign against polio in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 19, 2022. (Photo by Saifurahman Safi/Xinhua)
Their stories are absolutely devastating, but too familiar -- children in federal immigration custody face a restrictive care system that all too often fails to meet the needs of children that do not have family to whom they can be released.
NEW YORK, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- As the one-year anniversary of the Taliban's takeover in Afghanistan has come and gone, about 100 Afghan youth remain in United States government custody without their parents, the majority of whom are placed in shelters and other congregate care settings, reported the Time magazine last week.
"This number reflects both great progress in releasing hundreds of Afghan youth to sponsors over the past year and significant issues that plague the system serving unaccompanied minors," said the report.
"After escaping the brutal Taliban regime, Afghan youth who have yet to be reunited with family have languished for months in highly regimented settings ill-suited to meet the needs of children with complex trauma," it noted.
Their stories are absolutely devastating, but too familiar -- children in federal immigration custody face a restrictive care system that all too often fails to meet the needs of children that do not have family to whom they can be released, said the report.
Most children live with constant anxiety about the safety of their families in Afghanistan but face strict limits on how often they can speak with their families, and their hopes of continuing their education in the United States have also been frustrated, it added. ■