In the first day of his second term as president, Donald Trump issued a wave of executive orders affecting everything from federal diversity initiatives to the naming of Denali and the Gulf of Mexico.
Another Day 1 executive order suspended the relocation program created by former President Joe Biden to resettle more than 15,000 refugees in the U.S.
Many came from Afghanistan and became refugeed after helping support the U.S. Army before the troops pulled out in 2021 and the Taliban returned to power. Others come from places such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venezuela and Syria.
Trump order: 'No new travel bookings will be made'
"The United States lacks the ability to absorb large numbers of migrants, and in particular, refugees, into its communities in a manner that does not compromise the availability of resources for Americans, that protects their safety and security, and that ensures the appropriate assimilation of refugees," the executive order issued late on Jan. 20 reads.
The order further states that "no new travel bookings [for refugees] will be made."
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Many of the Afghan refugees were waiting in Pakistan and Qatar for army planes that were slated to start departing on the night of Jan. 21, when they were informed that their flights would be canceled.
"Travel has been canceled for people who had plans," Kathie O'Callaghan, who heads the Hearts and Homes for Refugees program, which resettles refugees in New York's Westchester County, told NBC. "Many of these families were very close to arriving and will be in limbo."
A government official who remained anonymous told CNN that the order now leaves thousands of people "stuck" in their transit countries without any understanding of when or whether they will be able to leave.
While the memo stated that it was supposed to start on Jan. 27, the cancellation of evacuation flights shows that it has already started taking effect.
'It is not clear what is going to happen to those individuals'
"It is not clear what is going to happen to those individuals," the official said. "They could be stuck there, we don't know for how long."
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Trump has similarly tried to kill any Democratic Party refugee-resettlement initiatives started under the Obama administration during his first term as president.
Data show that while 100,034 people were admitted in the U.S. under refugee status in 2024, that number was only at 11,454 in 2021. After becoming president, Biden made a push to revamp programs offering protection to those fleeing political, religious and other types of persecution.
One of the largest nonprofit refugee assistance groups in the country, the International Rescue Committee responded to Trump's order by calling it "a step backwards."
While the order justifies the decision by saying the country lacks the "resources" to absorb large numbers of refugees, the nonprofit argues that most of the resettlement that occurs after arrival is largely done at the volunteer level and is not a drain on locals.
"The refugee resettlement program is a proven, orderly, cost-effective way of offering life-saving protection to some of the most vulnerable people in the world," IRC Chief Executive David Miliband said of the order.
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