A agriculture scholar with dreams of pursuing a PhD, she is worried about not being able to provide for those still in Kabul. She was evacuated from Kabul and forced to leave her parents and other family members behind. Twenty-four-year old Lina feels the same. “Just a date, no matter how far away it is, would help us continue.” Abdul is careful to explain that he is very grateful for the chance given to him, but maintains it is not fair to keep people in uncertainty, with no idea when they can restart studies, working, and their lives. “The other day, I got so depressed I looked up flights to go back to Kabul. He explains that this is causing them both to suffer from depression as they have no idea when their lives can “start again”. The US State Department has not issued them a case number or given any timeline. If we have to stay here for two more months or two more years, I don’t mind, but the not knowing is so difficult, he added.Ībdul said that he and his wife, who sits next to him wiping tears from her eyes, have not been given any idea of how long they will have to stay. We haven’t even been given a case number,” said Abdul, a young scholar who spoke to EURACTIV in the northern Albanian city of Shengjin. We do not know how long it will take to get our visa’s. “I was told we would be staying in Albania for a few days and then would go to Germany and then the United States. But delays from the US authorities and a reported lack of communication have meant many are now living in limbo. While they are ever-thankful to their hosts’ kindness, the uncertainty of knowing their future is causing problems.Īirlifted out of Kabul as bombs detonated around them, many of the refugees, including activists, scholars, NGO workers, and journalists, were told they would stay in Albania for “a few days” before moving on to the US. Four months after Albania stepped up to accept thousands of Afghan refugees fleeing the Taliban, some 2000 live in hotels on the country’s Adriatic coast.