UK Unveils Secret Plan to Relocate Afghans After Major Data Leak
By Staff, Agencies
Britain has implemented a covert operation to relocate thousands of Afghans to the UK following a significant data breach that exposed sensitive personal information, putting many at risk of Taliban retaliation after the group regained control of Afghanistan.
In February 2022, nearly 19,000 applicants seeking relocation to the UK after the Taliban takeover had their personal details leaked by the British Ministry of Defense [MoD]. The leak, reportedly accidental, was only detected in August 2023 when part of the data appeared on Facebook.
Concerns over potential Taliban targeting led the previous government to establish a secret relocation plan estimated to cost around £2 billion [$2.7 billion], involving thousands of vulnerable Afghans. The leaked data also revealed names of members of parliament and senior military officers who had supported Afghan soldiers working alongside British forces and their families in seeking asylum.
John Healey, Britain’s defense minister, called the breach “a serious data incident that should never have happened” and described it as one of the most severe security failures in recent UK history, both financially and in terms of endangering thousands, including Afghan personnel who aided British troops before their chaotic withdrawal in 2021.
Healey disclosed that about 4,500 Afghans and their family members have been relocated or are en route to the UK under this previously undisclosed plan. However, he noted no further asylum offers would be made to Afghans affected by the leak, citing a government review which found little evidence of Taliban intent to retaliate against former officials.
MoD data published on Tuesday shows that across various Afghan resettlement programs, a total of 56,100 people—including family members—have either arrived in the UK or are awaiting travel.
The leak comes at a time of strained public finances and rising anti-immigration sentiment, with the right-leaning Reform UK party leading in polls. Meanwhile, the government faces lawsuits from those impacted by the breach, potentially raising the overall cost significantly.
The Guardian estimates the total expense of all resettlement schemes now ranges between £5.5 billion and £6 billion.
In an anonymous interview with Sky News, an Afghan who served alongside British forces for a decade expressed feelings of betrayal following the leak. He said, “We work for them, for [the] British, we help them. So now we are left behind, right now. And from today, I don't know about my future.” He described receiving an email warning that his personal details had been compromised. “I've got two kids. All my family are... in danger. Right now... I'm just completely lost.”
The UK initially deployed troops to Afghanistan following the September 11, 2001 attacks in the US. Early in 2022, a confidential spreadsheet containing personal information of Afghans who had assisted the British government before the Taliban’s 2021 return was accidentally emailed to an unauthorized external recipient.
A superinjunction had concealed the breach since August 2023, preventing media from reporting on it. This unprecedented government-requested ban—the longest in UK history—was lifted by the High Court on Tuesday, allowing full details to emerge.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s center-left government, elected last July, has launched a review into the data breach, the injunction, and the relocation efforts.
