'I won't go back': Afghan interpreters stuck in third countries

There are still about 2,000 eligible people and their families stranded in Afghanistan and about 200 more in third countries such as Pakistan and Iran, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has confirmed.

Nearly a year on from Operation Pitting, the British evacuation from Kabul, many former Afghan interpreters are still waiting to hear if they have permission to come to the UK.

Forces News spoke to an Afghan interpreter who was forced out of her country by Taliban threats.

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She has been granted temporary leave to study in Iran, but her visa will soon run out and she risks being deported back to Afghanistan.

"I won't go back, I don't even want to think about it," she told Forces News.

Desperate for asylum in the UK, she has applied to the Afghan Relocation Scheme, known as ARAP, which is jointly administered by the MOD and the Home Office.

The scheme has received hundreds of thousands of applications and 9,962 people have been helped to safety, but more are still eligible to apply.