Thousands of Afghans put at risk by MoD data breach still stranded and many ‘in danger’ months on

Thousands of Afghans put at risk after their data was leaked in a disastrous mistake by the Ministry of Defense (MoD) are still waiting to be brought to safety in the UK more than six months after the scandal. Independent can reveal.

Nearly 400 people who supported British efforts in Afghanistan and whose personal information was later breached by the UK government are “trapped” in Afghanistan and neighboring countries and scrambling to get out.

About 1,900 of his family members were also left in limbo. One Afghan analyst called on the government to “redouble its efforts” to remove the last families, saying hundreds were still “at risk of retaliation from the Taliban”.

Campaigners said the latest figures for December 2025, obtained through freedom of information requests, showed evictions in the UK were “running too slowly with people’s lives under threat”.

Defense Select Committee Chairman Tan Dhesi said bringing people from Afghanistan to the UK was not easy but “every month counts”. “It is clear that time is of the essence for Afghans who remain in Afghanistan and have the right to resettle in the UK,” he added.

The Ministry of Defense said it was committed to getting people out of Afghanistan and that the data breach did not put people at further risk.

Personal information and contact details of approximately 18,700 people applying for the government’s Afghan resettlement plans were leaked in 2022 due to a Department of Defense error; this was only discovered in the summer of 2023 after part of a spreadsheet was shared on social media.

The discovery of the bug led to one of the most extraordinary secret government operations in modern history amid fears that up to 100,000 lives were at risk. An unprecedented gag order was used to cover up the breach; affected families only discovered the danger they were potentially put into when the injunction was lifted in July last year.

When the Ministry of Defense data loss was revealed, officials said around 600 Afghans who had the right to come to the UK because of their work for the British and the data breach, as well as 2,400 family members, still needed to be evacuated.

Another 2,400 eligible people have not yet been released as of last July due to data loss. These estimates cannot be directly compared to published figures, officials said. Independent Under FOI because they are calculated differently.

“We will honor the 600 invitations extended to any person still in Afghanistan and their immediate families,” Defense Secretary John Healey said in July last year, adding: “When this nation makes a promise, we must keep that promise.”

But campaigners in the UK and Afghans warn that these families do not have the financial resources to pay for visas and transport to leave the Taliban-ruled country. An independent caseworker known as Person A, who alerted the government to the MoD data breach in the summer of 2023, said the UK government had withdrawn evacuation support for Afghan families, leaving them “trapped”.

A former Afghan soldier brought to the UK under the Ministry of Defense’s Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (Arab) said his brother and his family were approved to relocate more than a year ago but were unable to escape Afghanistan. The former special forces commando said: “My brother is in a bad financial situation because he cannot work for the Taliban government. I am angry that my brother was one of the most suitable people to come to the UK. He was injured while serving in the British forces; others, who were not soldiers, entered the UK, while others like my brother were left behind.”

“I personally am grateful for the help and support I have received, but my brother is in a difficult situation and I cannot do anything for him. His life and that of his family are in danger.”

Hundreds of former members of the Afghan special forces have been given a route to resettlement in the UK following a review of their previously rejected cases, the government announced on Thursday. A total of 884 decisions involving former special forces soldiers have been overturned, but it is not yet clear how quickly they can be released.

Daniel Carey, partner at Deighton Pierce Glynn, said: “884 grants are welcome and many of our clients are among them. However, around three-quarters of them were approved a year ago. So this figure highlights the very low approval rate, with thousands rejected under review.”

New figures published this month show tens of thousands of Afghans are still waiting to find out whether they will be granted asylum in the UK. The National Audit Office (NAO) found 29,655 people are still waiting to hear whether they will be allowed to resettle in Britain under Afghan resettlement programmes.

Additionally, authorities estimate that approximately 9,741 people are waiting to be brought here after admission. Ministers had committed to bringing all eligible Afghans to the UK by March 2029; However, the official in charge of the program believes that they will not be able to achieve this goal unless there is “urgent intervention”.

Sarah Fenby-Dixon, Afghanistan advisor for the Refugee Assistance Network, said: “While I appreciate the government’s ongoing efforts to relocate Afghan special forces members and their families affected by the data breach, the process is appallingly slow.

“On a personal level, this means that people who continue to hide in 2021 will not be able to work and will have to relocate regularly, leading to dire psychological and economic consequences. The Arab process is largely working, but it is working too slowly when people’s lives are threatened. The government needs to redouble its efforts and ensure that eligible applicants are taken to safety as quickly as possible.”

Mr Dhesi, the Labor MP, added: “Bringing people from Afghanistan to the UK is of course not easy. But every month counts. The committee has heard of individuals and families going into hiding and impoverishment, and in some cases even losing their lives. As we conclude our inquiry, I am sure we will want to ask defense ministers about those left behind in Afghanistan, as well as those successfully brought to the UK.”

Independent caseworker Person A added: “The withdrawal of government support for families to be transferred to Pakistan means people are stuck in Afghanistan with no way out. “These families are poor, with no income since July 2021.

“Delays in all evacuations have serious consequences; families are affected by air strikes in Afghanistan, Iran and Lebanon. We have lost contact with some families in the last two weeks and we fear the worst.”

A Ministry of Defense spokesman said: “We remain absolutely committed to the promises we have made to our Afghan friends and allies, including resettling eligible Afghans to the UK.

“Eligible Afghans continue to move to the UK after obtaining UK visas and we still aim for all Afghan Resettlement Scheme eligible people who wish to move to the UK during this parliament to do so.

“The Rimmer review has made clear that those affected by the data incident are unlikely to be at increased risk of being targeted entirely as a result of being in the dataset.