Canadian LGBTQ2S+ organization Rainbow Railroad assists 29 in fleeing Afghanistan

TORONTO -

Canadian charity organization Rainbow Railroad says it has helped co-ordinate an airlift of 29 LGBTQ2S+ Afghans out of Afghanistan in a humanitarian mission.

Rainbow Railroad is a LGBTQ2S+ organization that provides pathways to safety for persecuted members of the queer community all over the world. They are well known for being instrumental in helping several LGBTQ2s+ people escape from a brutal crackdown in Chechnya in 2017.

Kimahli Powell, the organization's executive director, said Monday on CTV’s Your Morning that the organization had received more than 700 requests for help from Afghans stuck in Afghanistan as Kabul once again fell under Taliban rule.

“The situation for LGBTQ2s+ folks was really difficult before the fall of Kabul…and it’s just gotten worse,” Powell said Monday. “We’re getting reports of family members turning over members of the [queer] community to the Taliban, kill lists being distributed and active violence.”

FIRST GROUP ARRIVES IN U.K.

The 29 Afghans airlifted out of Afghanistan flew aboard a military flight and arrived Friday at an undisclosed location in the United Kingdom, Rainbow Railroad said. The group will enter quarantine as part of the U.K.’s COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions and then be resettled.

In a press release, the U.K. Foreign Office said this mission marks the first group of LGBTQ2S+ Afghans to be helped by the government to leave their country since the end of the evacuation. The finer details and logistics of the operation were not disclosed for privacy and security reasons.

Among the 29 are students and activists who have repeatedly stood up for the LGBTQ2S+ community in Afghanistan which made them vulnerable under Taliban rule, the statement says, with “many facing increased levels of persecution, discrimination and assault.”

"Since the fall of Kabul, Rainbow Railroad has been leading efforts to find safety for LGBTQI+ Afghans facing grave danger. In partnership with others, we have directly relocated dozens of persons to safer countries where they can live lives free of state-directed persecution,” Powell said in the release.

“This is just the beginning of our efforts to help hundreds of LGBTQ2S+ individuals we are supporting in Afghanistan relocate to safety. We look forward to continuing to work with the UK government and other governments ready to follow their lead to help Afghans at risk,” he continued.

The 29 new arrivals will be supported by U.K. organizations Stonewall, Micro Rainbow and other LGBTQ2s+ charities in setting up their new lives.