Afghans won’t help UK unless protected from Rwanda Bill, senior military figure warns

Afghans will not help the UK unless they are protected under the Rwanda Bill, a senior military figure has warned.

The proposed legislation, which will send some asylum seekers from the UK to the central African country to have their claims processed, has been criticised for potentially deporting Afghans who “were prepared to die to” help British forces during overseas tours.

In a letter to The Telegraph, retired Brig John Donnelly, writes: “Fundamentally, our operational effectiveness on overseas operations depends upon our ability to recruit and trust local people.

“If they do not believe that we will support them, if their safety in their country of birth is compromised, then why would they volunteer to help us?”

In his letter he adds that as Lord Stirrup, a former Chief of the Defence Staff, said during the debates on the Bill, the support of Afghans “is crucial to the success and safety of our own Armed Forces”.

Brig Donnelly, who served in the British Army from 1982 to 2016, said in every operation he served on from the Balkans to Afghanistan and Iraq, the British military “relied heavily” on local interpreters and guides to “fulfil the mission”.

“Many of those people were prepared to die to help us, or risk their long-term security after we had withdrawn,” he said.

Brig Donnelly said he supported an amendment proposed by Lord Browne of Ladyton, a former defence secretary, that would exempt those that had worked with British Forces overseas from removal to Rwanda.

The bill, which will return to the Commons on April 15, will be considered by the Government after Easter. On Friday The Archbishop of Canterbury signalled that the Church will not block the Rwanda Bill if MPs rejected the Lords amendments next month.

Brig Donnelly said there were “moral” as well as “operational” reasons for supporting the Lord Browne amendment.

“Morally, we owe a duty to anyone who was prepared to work alongside us and put themselves at risk, and it is unconscionable that we should be contemplating abandoning them,” he writes.

His remarks come as the Government announced a military camp in Wales will be used to house Afghans who have fled the Taliban as part of the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap).

The Arap scheme supports Afghan nationals and their families who worked for, or with, the UK government and British armed forces in Afghanistan.

East Camp, a Ministry of Defence housing estate in St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan, will house 50 migrants by the end of the month, with more joining them in mid-April. In total it can host a maximum of 180 people.

‘Debt of gratitude’

An MoD spokesman said: “We owe a debt of gratitude to those brave Afghans who risked their lives working alongside our forces in support of the UK mission

“To ensure Arap-eligible families can begin a settled life in the UK as quickly as possible, the UK Government is offering transitional and settled accommodation from the Defence Estate, including at East Camp St Athan.

“Eligible Afghans will be housed there temporarily for an approximate period of six weeks before moving to more settled accommodation.”

Afghan citizens who are eligible for relocation to the UK under Arap may come with a partner, children and additional family members who are deemed eligible by the MoD and suitable for relocation by the Home Office.

Those who arrive in the UK under the Arap scheme have indefinite leave to remain in the UK. The MoD said it is working with the Welsh Government and the Vale of Glamorgan Council to ensure that the project is managed “with everybody in mind”, especially those who live locally.