LONDON: A British newspaper The Telegraph has revealed that Afghan migrants are a obtaining fake death threat letters from the Taliban in exchange for money to use as evidence in asylum applications across Western countries. According to The Telegraph’s investigative report, Afghan migrants in Europe are presenting these counterfeit Taliban letters to claim that their lives are endangered if they return to Afghanistan.
The report says that corrupt Afghan officials issue such letters for bribes, ranging from 40 to 200 British pounds.
During a sting operation, a reporter managed to purchase fake letters—complete with Taliban signatures—for around £40 (about 3,500 Afghanis) from local authorities in three regions.
These letters accused the recipients of cooperating with the British government and warned them of brutal punishment.
Some even claimed that the Taliban were monitoring the person’s social media activity and their family’s movements, warning of consequences if they failed to surrender.
Interestingly, each fake letter mentioned the particular European country where the asylum application had been filed.
The inquiry found that “premium” letters costing £200 (about 17,000 Afghanis) even carried official Taliban seals, increasing their chances of being accepted by immigration authorities.
The newspaper warned that such fake documents can trouble the genuine asylum seekers.
In 2022, over 100,000 Afghans applied for asylum in the United Kingdom, claiming to have assisted British forces before the Taliban takeover in 2021.
However, many sources revealed that most applicants had no real connection to the military forces and faked their cases using forged letters.
Some even wrote threats in Pashto themselves since there was no way to verify authenticity, and the UK Home Office often accepted them without any further inquiry.
A Taliban official told the newspaper that certain local Taliban members provide such letters without the approval of the leadership, calling it illegal.
He said that since the Taliban now hold power, they no longer send such threats but instead arrest anyone committing unlawful acts.
Meanwhile, the European Union has begun technical talks with the Taliban government to facilitate the return of Afghan nationals whose asylum requests were rejected.
EU spokesperson Markus Lammert confirmed that 20 European countries—including Austria, Germany, Italy, Greece, and Sweden—signed a letter urging direct engagement with Afghanistan to arrange either voluntary or forced repatriation of Afghans not entitled to stay in Europe.
This move comes amid growing pressure from right-wing political groups seeking stricter immigration controls across Europe.
