Evacuate Our Allies (EOA) is a coalition of veterans’ groups, human rights organizations, religious groups, and refugee organizations advocating for the relocation and resettlement of as many at-risk Afghans to the United States as possible. ¹

The EOA Coalition was initially designed to help Afghans get out of the country, but went on to aid those refugees in the U.S. as well as advocate for those left behind. ²

Background

Evacuate Our Allies (EOA) is a coalition of veteran groups, human rights organizations, religious groups, and refugee organizations advocating for the relocation and resettlement of at-risk Afghans after the United States military withdrawal in 2021. ¹

The EOA was founded in April 2021 after President Joe Biden’s announcement that the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan was forthcoming. The coalition’s mission was to ensure a “prompt and dignified resettlement in the United States.” ³

The coalition says it wants to advance the U.S. government’s promises of safe passage and protection for at-risk Afghans following the decades-long U.S. war in the country. ⁴

During 2021, the coalition grew from fewer than a dozen member organizations and experts to hundreds of members. ³

As June 2023, the member organizations for the EOA Coalition were Afghan Refugee Relief, Afghans for a Better Tomorrow, Alliance in Support of the Afghan People, Allied Shepherd, Artists for Afghanistan Foundation, Ascentria Care Alliance, Common Defense, Conklin Immigration Law LLC, Curran Berger & Kludt, Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island, EdX, Evocati, FAMIL, Fletcher Afghan Evac & Resettlement, Freedom Now, Hearts & Homes for Refugees, Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, Innovation Law Lab, Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women, International Association of Women Judges, International Institute of New England, International Returns And Reintegration Assistance, International Senior Lawyers Project, Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area, Michigan Immigrant Rights Center, Mina’s List, National Immigration Forum, Paloonkey, Paws Unite People, Refugee Congress, Refugee Council USA, Restoration Immigration Legal Aid, Shona ba Shona, Special Operations Association of America, Spring Institute for Intercultural Learning, T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, the Advocates for Human Rights, Upwardly Global, US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, USAHello, With Honor, Women for Afghan Women, and the World Hazara Council USA. ⁴

In August 2024, at the third anniversary of the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban, the EOA issued a statement saying it “continues to demand that America fulfills the promises it owes to our Afghan partners.” It added: “These brave individuals, who risked everything to build a democratic and free Afghanistan, deserve our gratitude, peace of mind, and the permanent security that comes from honoring our commitments. Their decades of sacrifice and dedication demand nothing less.” ⁵

Operations Center

The Evacuate Our Allies (EOA) Operations Center, or “Ops Center,” is staffed seven days per week for relocation information at each stage of the process, including connections and referrals for assistance groups. ³

The coalition set up an EOA Operations Center, which it says is a knowledge hub and resource center to connect people and organizations to up to date resources on relocation. It says the ops center services are available to all organizations in the EOA Coalition. ⁴

Public Policy Advocacy

In July 2021, after lobbying from the Evacuate Our Allies Coalition, Congress passed the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021. The bill increased funding for the Defense Department and the State Department to evacuate and resettle Afghan interpreters and others who worked with the U.S. mission in Afghanistan. Further, the legislation added 8,000 more Special Immigrant Visas and eased eligibility requirements for the program. ³

On the August 31, 2021 deadline Biden gave to end the operation, member organizations of Evacuate Our Allies said the mission must continue to support those seeking to evacuate and emigrate whether to the United States or a safe third location, preferably U.S. territory. ⁶

After the Biden administration withdrew U.S. forces from Afghanistan, the coalition encouraged the administration to protect Afghan allies who fought with U.S. troops for the last two decades. ⁴

The coalition developed a strategy for the immediate evacuation of everyone in Afghanistan who qualified to special immigrant visas, or the SIV program. It urged eventual evacuation for all other at-risk Afghans. ⁴

In November 2021, EOA held Virtual Congressional Advocacy Days to facilitate communications between advocates and their members of Congress in the lead up to Veterans Day, asking members of Congress to expand legal status for existing Afghan refugees in the United States, allow new Afghan arrivals to apply for lawful permanent residence status, and press the Biden administration to continue evacuations out of Afghanistan. ⁷

The organization has advocated legislation such as the Afghan Allies Protection Act and the Afghan Adjustment Act to provide long-term security and legal status to the community of Afghan refugees already in the United States and those left behind. ⁵

After the fall of Kabul to the Taliban, EOA advocated for passage of the fiscal year 2022 Continuing Resolution to have funding for Afghan resettlement as well as statutory solutions to resettle the more than 80,000 Afghans who were evacuated and paroled into the United States. ³

But the EOA coalition expressed frustration that Congress in December 2022 did not include legislation to give Afghan refugees living in the United States a pathway to permanent residency as part of the year-end omnibus spending bill. After the 2021 withdrawal, more than 20,000 Afghans were flown to the U.S. and granted a two-year temporary “humanitarian parole,” which allowed them to be in the country but unable to work. The EOA said in a statement lawmakers who opposed the bill, “want to forget the debt we owe those who fought alongside Americans, whether it was in battle or building democracy and respect for rights in Afghanistan.” It added, “The world will not forget this intransigence, and the U.S. will in the future have fewer allies, a grave threat to our national security.” ⁸

The EOA coalition has worked with the Department of Homeland Security’s Unified Coordination Group to promote work with civil society organizations through Operation Allies Welcome. The EOA coalition hosted more than 20 engagements with dozens of experts and officials representing 12 federal agencies since September 2021. ³

Leadership

Seelai Karzai is the Afghanistan advocacy campaign manager for the EOA Coalition at Human Rights First. ⁹

Jill Marie Bussey is the director for public policy of the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service and has also been a key leader in the EOA coalition. ¹⁰

Chris Purdy, director of Veterans for American Ideals at Human Rights First, has been a spokesperson for the EOA Coalition. ² Purdy, in September 2023, complained evacuees have been living in “temporary housing, temporary employment, temporarily sending their kids to neighborhood schools. This is unacceptable.” ¹¹

Retired U.S. Army Col. Steve Miska runs the EOA Operations Center in downtown Los Angeles. Miska served three combat tours in Iraq. ¹²

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9.  Press Release. “A Year After War’s End EOA Assists Afghans Seeking Safety.” Evacuate Our Allies. August 31, 2022. Accessed February 13, 2025. https://www.evacuateourallies.org/press-statements/year-after-war-s-end-eoa-assists-afghans-seeking-safety
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