Taliban Risk, British Silence: Afghan Leak Uncovered

Thousands of Afghans have been quietly relocated to the UK under a confidential program launched in response to a major data breach, which exposed the personal details of nearly 19,000 individuals seeking asylum following the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan.

The breach, which occurred in February 2022, involved a spreadsheet containing names, contact information, and family details of Afghan nationals who had applied for resettlement under the UK’s Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP).

The sensitive data was mistakenly sent outside secure government channels by a Ministry of Defense (MoD) official.

Although the previous UK government discovered the leak in August 2023, it kept the incident under wraps for nearly a year and implemented a covert resettlement initiative nine months later.

Named the Afghan Relocation Route, the program has so far brought around 4,500 Afghans to the UK, with a further 600 people and their immediate families expected to arrive.

The operation remained classified for over three years, protected by a superinjunction that prohibited media coverage until a High Court ruling lifted the order on Tuesday.

The breach was serious, those affected were potentially at risk of retaliation by the Taliban due to their connections with Western forces.

Defense Secretary John Healey, speaking in the House of Commons, issued a formal apology, calling the incident a “serious departmental error.”

He revealed that the spreadsheet had surfaced on Facebook, prompting alarm and triggering the government’s response.

Healey explained that the data loss occurred amid the chaos following the fall of Kabul in August 2021 and was one of several similar incidents from that period.

The leaked list included names of Afghan applicants, as well as senior military personnel, officials, and MPs.

However, according to an independent review, there is no evidence that anyone was harmed directly as a result of the leak.

Still, the government has urged affected individuals to take precautionary steps, such as monitoring their digital presence and avoiding messages from unknown sources.

The Afghan Relocation Route, which has cost the UK government £400 million to date, and is projected to cost up to £450 million more, is now being wound down.

However, the government has pledged to honor all relocation offers already extended.

Details of the scheme, including the scale of the breach and the covert response, only came to light after Mr Justice Chamberlain lifted the gag order.

It stated that the injunction raised “serious free speech concerns” and created a “scrutiny vacuum” that undermined democratic accountability.

He also acknowledged the risk that Taliban sympathizers might have seen the leaked data online or passed it along to hostile parties.

The superinjunction had not only blocked media coverage but also prevented members of Parliament, including John Healey himself, while he was still shadow defense secretary, from discussing the issue.

Critics have slammed the secrecy, calling it an abuse of power and a hindrance to transparency.

Shadow defense secretary James Cartlidge, who served in government when the scheme was initiated, admitted that the leak represented a “serious and unacceptable breach of data protocols.”

Meanwhile, Erin Alcock, a lawyer with Leigh Day—the firm representing many ARAP applicants and their families—described the breach as a “catastrophic failure.”

The original ARAP program was established during the chaotic evacuation from Afghanistan in 2021, following the abrupt withdrawal of U.S. forces and the rapid Taliban takeover.

That evacuation brought approximately 36,000 Afghans to the UK, but the operation faced widespread criticism.

A 2022 inquiry by the Foreign Affairs Committee labeled it a “disaster” and a “betrayal” of those left behind.

In a separate incident earlier this year, the government acknowledged another data breach involving Afghan nationals and confirmed that financial compensation had been offered to those affected.

Now, as the details of the secret relocation effort are finally disclosed, questions are being raised not just about how the leak happened—but why the public and Parliament were kept in the dark for so long.

For Diaspora Digital Media Updates click on Whatsapp, or Telegram. For eyewitness accounts/ reports/ articles, write to: citizenreports@diasporadigitalmedia.com. Follow us on X (Fomerly Twitter) or Facebook