'My father was killed by the Taliban': Afghan families find refuge in Prince Albert

Six families made their way to settle in Prince Albert after more than 300 refugees landed in Saskatoon on Nov. 2.

Najibulla Sorosh, Settlement Counsellor with YWCA, was also in the same situation when he arrived in Canada in September 2021. He has now adjusted to his new life in Canada with his family. He feels happy about the arrival of the new families who he says are now safe in Canada.

“I was alone; now I can make more sense of being here with some Afghans, and sometimes we can have our conversation in our own language and share our culture,” said Sorosh.

"According to the responsibility that YWCA has, we provide housing, health, school and lots of other settlement needs for these newcomers."

A TURNING POINT

Suliman Sabiri was one of the Afghans who is resettling in Prince Albert with his wife and two children. He used to work as a trainer for the Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) that was part of the military in Afghanistan.

He says it was very difficult getting a visa to leave Afghanistan, which was why he had to result to creative ways to get one.

"I suggested to the government that I am sick and because of this problem I want to go to Pakistan,” said Sabiri.

Pretending to be sick allowed him and his family to flee to Pakistan where they were able to apply for a visa to go to Canada.

Sabiri tells CTV News, it was when his father was killed by the Taliban that he decided it was not safe for him and his family to stay in Afghanistan anymore.

"My father was killed by the Taliban. So because of that, I escaped from Afghanistan to Canada,” said Sabiri.

"When my father was killed by the Taliban, I couldn't find the body of my father up to 20 days."

Sabiri’s father worked with the Afghan Military and was arrested and killed by the Taliban in 2009. Sabiri says they even had to pay in order to get the body of his father when it was found 20 days after.

Sabiri says he now feels safe and is looking forward to building his life in Canada.

“Now I am so happy in Canada because here we have security, we are safe. In Canada, I am physically and mentally safe.”

MISTREATED WORKER

Noor Ahmad found his way to Prince Albert from Afghanistan. He came with his wife and seven children. Back in Afghanistan, he was working with the Canadian troops and military, so he says he became a target of the Taliban.

“We worked with the Canadian military and because of that, the Taliban mistreated us. They were trying to kill us,” said Noor Ahmad.

While he came with most of his family, he was not able to bring everybody.

“When I moved to Canada, I left some of my relatives in Afghanistan. One is my daughter and her children, and the other is my son’s fiancé,” said Noor Ahmad.

He is worried about the language barrier but says he is just grateful to be in a safe place.

“Here we feel safe and sound. We are safe here and we are happy to live in Canada now.”

BUILDING A NEW LIFE 

From 2003-2005, Shaifiullah Habibi worked with the Canadian Military in Kabul. He applied to go to Canada and arrived in November 2, 2022 with his wife and three children.

He and his family were trying to get out of Afghanistan in 2021 and were fortunate to have avoided the bombing that took place at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.

“Last year, when the government of Afghanistan collapsed and evacuation happened, we got an email from the Canadian government to come out. For many days, we tried to enter the airport but because of the number of people there, we didn’t manage to enter,” said Habibi.

“And then we received a message to stay away from the airport and choose a safe place. Hours later, that explosion occurred. We are very thankful to the Government of Canada because they warned us. And now if we are safe, it’s because of that message we got from the Government of Canada.”

Habibi is worried about not being able to speak English but is looking forward to building a new life for himself and his family in Canada in the next years to come.

“I want to be a good citizen here. I want to have my own job; my children go to school. I want to build a good life for myself and for my children. I want to compensate all the things the Government of Canada did to me. I want to repay it back to the government and the people in Canada,” said Habibi.

The Government of Canada is helping Afghan nationals resettle through three special programs: the Special Immigration Measures Program for Afghans who assisted the Government of Canada, a humanitarian program, and a permanent residence pathway for extended family members of former interpreters.

The Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada aims to resettle 40,000 Afghan nationals by 2024.