Afghan students in Oman are confronted with expulsion after freezing USAID of Trump

More than 80 Afghan women who fled the Taliban to continue higher education in Oman, are now facing an upcoming deportation back to Afghanistan after the Trump administration administration for freezing foreign care programs.

Funded by the US International Development Agency (USAID), their scholarships were sharply terminated after freezing funding ordered by President Donald Trump when he returned to office in January.

“It was a broken heart,” a student told the BBC, talking anonymously for fear of repression. “Everyone was shocked and crying. We were told we would be sent back within two weeks.”

Since regaining power nearly four years ago, the Taliban imposed Draconian restrictions on women, including their ban on universities.

US funding has enabled thousands of Afghan women to study abroad or continue education online, but many of these programs have already been stopped.

The freezing of the Trump administration is confronted with legitimate obstacles, but thousands of humanitarian programs around the world have been discontinued or discarded as the White House seeks to shorten billions in government spending.

Oman students say the preparation is already underway to return them to Afghanistan and have liked the international community to “intervene urgently.”

The BBC saw emails sent to the 82 students who inform them that their scholarships were “terminated” due to the termination of the program and funding USAID.

Emails – who confirm the news, will be “deeply disappointing and disturbing” – refer to the travel arrangements back in Afghanistan, which caused concerns among students.

“We need immediate protection, financial assistance and opportunities to move a safe country where we can continue our education,” one told the BBC.

The USAID media contact page remains offline. The BBC contacted the US State Department for comment.

Afghan women, who are now forced to return from Oman, have been conducting graduates and postgraduate courses on the female scholarships (WSE), a USAID program, which began in 2018.

It provides scholarships to Afghan women to learn science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), disciplines forbidden for Taliban women.

Just over a week ago, students had said that their scholarships had been terminated.

“It was as if everything had taken me away,” another student told the BBC. “This was the biggest moment. I’m under intense stress right now.”

These women, mostly aged in their 20s, qualified for scholarships in 2021, before the Taliban seized Afghanistan. Many continued their studies at Afghan universities until December 2022, when the Taliban banned higher education for women.

After 18 months in Limbo, they said they had fled to Pakistan last September.

The USAID then facilitated its visas in Oman, where they arrived between October and November 2024.

“If we are sent back, we will face serious consequences. It would mean losing all our dreams,” a student said. “We will not be able to learn and our families can force us to marry. Many of us can also be at personal risk because of our previous accessories and activism.”

The Talibans have broken up on women who protest for education and work, with many activists beating, retaining and threatening.

Women in Afghanistan are described as “dead bodies moving” under the brutal regime policies.

The Taliban government says it is trying to resolve the issue of women’s education, but also defended the dictates of its supreme leader, stating that they are “in accordance with the Islamic Sharia law.”

“Afghanistan is experiencing Paul Apartheid, with women being systematically excluded from fundamental rights, including education,” a student said.

She and her friends in Oman had managed to escape this fate, as the scholarships had to fund their education by 2028.

“When we came here, our sponsors told us not to return to Afghanistan until 2028 for vacations or to visit our families because it is not safe for us. And now they tell us to go,” a student said.

Last month, White House Deputy Secretary, Anna Kelly, accused the situation of Afghan women in the departure of US military from the country under the Democrats, telling The Washington Post: “Afghan women suffer as the catastrophic withdrawal of Joe Biden has allowed the Taliban to impose medieval policy.

The decision to reduce the funding of US assistance has fallen into the Trump administration and applied by the Ministry of Government of Elon Musk.

And these women face a gloomy future, urgently looking for a rescue line before time expires.

Additional reporting from Aakriti Tapar