Taliban's incredible migrant intervention: 'we are ready and willing' to work with Farage

The Taliban has said it is "ready and willing" to work with Nigel Farage to accept Afghans who have been deported from the UK.

A senior Taliban official said they would "embrace" any Afghans sent back under the Reform leader's plan, unveiled on Tuesday, to deport 600,000 illegal migrants.

Mr Farage said he would meet his deportation target by striking deals with countries such as Afghanistan, Iran and Eritrea and tearing up treaties including the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

The Telegraph reported Reform also suggested that it was willing to pay foreign regimes such as the Taliban - which is not recognised by the UK as Afghanistan's legitimate government - to incentivise them to accept returns. Other countries, such as Germany, have made deals with the Taliban to accept deported migrants.

However, the Taliban indicated that it would not take money directly but would accept aid to support returnees, insisting that they would be treated "with dignity".

Easier for Taliban to speak with Reform

Following Mr Farage's speech on Tuesday, No 10 opened the door to potentially agreeing their own deal with the Taliban in the future. However, the senior official in Kabul suggested that it may be easier to negotiate with the Reform leader than Sir Keir Starmer.

The official told The Telegraph: "We are ready and willing to receive and embrace whoever he [Nigel Farage] sends us. We are prepared to work with anyone who can help end the struggles of Afghan refugees, as we know many of them do not have a good life abroad.

"We will not take money to accept our own people, but we welcome aid to support newcomers, since there are challenges in accommodating and feeding those returning from Iran and Pakistan.

"Afghanistan is home to all Afghans, and the Islamic Emirate is determined to make this country a place where everyone - those already here, those returning, or those being sent back from the West by Mr Farage or anyone else - can live with dignity."

The official suggested that it might be easier to deal with the Reform leader if he were to become prime minister because of his "different" views.

"We will have to see what Mr Farage does when or if he becomes prime minister of Britain, but since his views are different, it may be easier to deal with him than with the current ones," he said. "We will accept anyone he sends, whether they are legal or illegal refugees in Britain."

Home Office challenge

Following Mr Farage's speech, Downing Street suggested that Sir Keir would not rule out a returns agreement with Afghanistan and Eritrea, with the Prime Minister's spokesman saying: "We're not going to take anything off the table."

A Home Office spokesman also said: "While conditions in certain countries will often make returns challenging, we continue to work tirelessly to remove those with no legal right to be in the UK."

However, it is more likely that any such deal would be more similar to an arrangement in Germany, with only foreign criminals and rejected Afghan asylum seekers covered.

German lessons

Last month, Germany resumed deportations to Afghanistan after negotiating a returns deal with the Taliban, even though Berlin does not officially recognise the Taliban government.

Germany has sent 109 Afghans - all convicted criminals - back on two flights in the past year, with deportations starting as a reaction to the fatal stabbing of a police officer by a failed asylum seeker in Mannheim.

In 2021, after taking over Kabul, a Taliban spokesman said Afghan courts would "decide how to proceed" with any asylum seekers who had committed crimes abroad.

Downing Street's comments highlight the threat Reform poses to Labour, with Mr Farage's party now ahead of Labour in most polls and is expected to be the main challenger at the next election.

Farage's new order

Under Mr Farage's plans, a new law would bar anyone, including Afghans who arrived illegally, from claiming asylum, making any claim to remain in the UK inadmissible, with the home secretary placed under a legal duty to remove them.

Asked about the risks of Afghans being tortured or killed if returned, Mr Farage said: "Does it bother me? It bothers me, but what really bothers me is what is happening on the streets of our country."

Referring to recent anti-immigration protests in Epping, he added: "What really bothers me is what is happening to British citizens. What really bothers me is what you've seen from the Bell [asylum] Hotel onwards."

Enforced and voluntary returns are currently paused and cannot be progressed because the Taliban will no longer accept travel documents issued by the Afghan embassy in London.

Only nine Afghans have been returned to the country since the Taliban took power in 2021, according to data released under freedom of information laws in May.

The Home Office said at the time that it was the UK's "longstanding rule that no one found to be at legitimate risk of persecution or serious harm will be expected to return to their country of origin".

As part of his plans, Mr Farage announced that Reform would set aside £2bn to help persuade foreign governments to accept deportations.

Zia Yusuf, the party's efficiency tsar, said it was "quite reasonable" to pay the Taliban to take back illegal migrants, given that the UK already provided Afghanistan with £151m a year in foreign aid.

Mr Farage has also committed the party to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), repeal the Human Rights Act and disapply three other international treaties to remove "obstacles" to migrants challenging their deportation if they have arrived illegally.