As the U.S. and Iran gear up for another potential confrontation in the Persian Gulf, a community of Afghan refugees left stranded for years at a U.S. military facility in Qatar fear that they might wind up in the crossfire. Once in CAS all were required to undergo an additional round of security vetting before resettlement in the United States, and for some this process stretched on for years. Those who had previously received clearance to come to the United States during the Biden administration have had their cases thrown into limbo by the Trump administration. I think it’s not going to be a joke anymore.”Whether Iran is aware that Afghan evacuees are housed at the base remains unclear. What was initially framed as a humanitarian operation now risks becoming a prolonged containment strategy—one that keeps Afghan evacuees out of Afghanistan but also out of the United States.