Assisting the Assisters: The Comparative Claims of Afghan Refugees

The recent withdrawal of Western states from Afghanistan saw widespread endorsement of the view that these states owe especially stringent duties of rescue to Afghans who assisted their armed forces during the 20 years of Western intervention and occupation.1 Although concern has been expressed for those who worked with Western states quite broadly, it is the treatment of those who directly assisted Western forces—for example, by working alongside troops as translators or interpreters—that has received the lion's share of attention and attracted the most fervent criticism.2 When I refer to “assisters” to Western forces, then, I am referring to Afghans who provided Western forces with this kind of direct support: those who stood “side by side with those on the frontline of combat.”3