- 150 days until the United States and United Kingdom withdraw from Afghanistan...
- 17,000 SIV Applicants waiting for their visas...
- Average wait time to get a visa through the 14-step process remains over 3.5 years...
- The law says it should take 9 months; the U.S. District Court of D.C. agreed in a class action lawsuit against the State Department...
- The State Department Afghanistan SIV Unit in Washington D.C. asked for 50 more staff last year...
- State OIG found 1 person conducting security evaluations for 17,000 applicants...
- The Under Secretary of State for Management is the Senior Coordinating Official for the SIV program; the position is currently vacant...
- 13 years later there is still no Department of Defense definition of "foreign interpreter"...
- At least 300 interpreters and family members killed since 2016...
- Since the beginning of 2021 we are losing on average 2 interpreters per month based on the stories we receive on Facebook and email...
- This is now potentially the largest evacuation of U.S. allies in 50 years...
We are now truly is a race against time to save our interpreters, battle buddies, and friends like Hewad:
“You can protest and hold a sign on the street, but because America is a country of laws, the most important thing to do is to work with the proper branches of government to get the laws changed,” Hewad said. And this is where No One Left Behind has been the most impactful. As the only organization dedicated to ensuring America keeps its promise to Iraqi and Afghan allies that served side by side with U.S. military and government personnel, they have been leading the fight in advocating for those left behind by the stagnant SIV program. They have worked with almost every major media outlet in the U.S. to keep the message alive, and continue to be the most reliable source of SIV news and information for both Afghanistan and Iraq military veterans and SIV applicants.
“It is hard to look through all of the government documents and know what is happening. No One Left Behind is doing a good job of giving regular updates and for many, they are the only thing that is giving us all hope that the SIV program will work again,” Hewad said.