WHO WE ARE
Operation Snow Leopard is committed to facilitating the safe evacuation and resettlement of high-risk Afghans, including children, women leaders, human rights defenders, lawyers, journalists, interpreters, and other vulnerable minorities.
So far, we have evacuated over 1,800 Afghans.
We aim to evacuate at least 700 more in the next year.
Isn’t everyone evacuated already?
No, on September 1, 2021, our allies, women and children, and other at-risk Afghans were made vulnerable to persecution under a dangerous new regime. This is a security and economic problem and a human rights issue. Operation Snow Leopard is dedicated to evacuating these vulnerable populations.
OUR PROCESS
Our process of safely evacuating and resettling at-risk Afghans is thorough and multi-faceted. It includes the following three key phases: EVACUATION, RESETTLEMENT, and MOVING FAMILIES.
EVACUATION
We have over 4,000 cases, all of which are subjected to our rigorous vetting and verification process. We then prioritize evacuations based on those individuals’ risk levels. We never sell seats to evacuees or profit off evacuations in any way.
Our evacuation efforts focus on the following key areas: driving diplomatic groundwork, securing destinations, providing immigration support, vetting partner organizations, creating evacuation plans, monitoring operations, and communicating directly with our evacuees to support them throughout the evacuation process.
The evacuation process has key three steps:
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First, all requests must be rigorously vetted to ensure they are legitimate.
Collect & Verify Documentation. In order to even get on a plane, each evacuee must have all the necessary paperwork for evacuation. This includes Special Immigrant Visa applications, P1/P2 applications, letters of recommendation, military service records, identification documents, visas, passports, Afghan IDs, etc.
Facilitate Advanced Government Verification. Each case must be submitted for additional screening to the appropriate branches of government for approval.
Once approved for evacuation, people are added to a manifest. But that’s just the beginning.
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Secure Destination Location. Each evacuee must meet additional requirements of the host country to even travel there. These requirements vary from country to country and are often narrow and restrictive.
Provide Safe Haven. All our evacuees need safe housing, food, water, medical supplies, etc. We work with our network of people on the ground in Afghanistan to keep our evacuees safe until we can get them out of the country.
Communicate with the Evacuee. The entire evacuation process is filled with much uncertainty. Our team communicates frequently with our evacuees to provide them with updates on their case status and offer support.
Once we have confirmed seats for an evacuee and family members on one of our chartered planes we then:
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Arrange Secure Ground Transportation. This involves transporting evacuees from their secure location to the airport. Before we transport people to the airport we do an additional in-person screening, matching paperwork with IDs for security purposes. At the airport terminal, pictures are used to ensure that names and faces match the documentation. Only those on the manifest will be allowed to board.
Connect to Support Resources. Our case managers connect evacuees with additional resources to help them successfully settle in their host country
RESETTLEMENT
Operation Snow Leopard’s commitment to refugees doesn’t end once they’ve left Afghanistan. We know that once they arrive in their destination country, their journey has only just begun.
OSL is working to create a seamless refugee resettlement operation for Afghans and other recently arrived refugees by bringing together a coalition of relevant organizations and government officials.
Through building relationships, collecting and utilizing data, and collaborative conferences, Operation Snow Leopard helps build strong supportive connections among peer organizations, tangible improvements in vertical coordination, and the foundations of a resettlement operation that can be replicated around the country.
MOVING A FAMILY
This is a complex process, with five major steps: Manifesting, Gathering Documents, Facilitating Travel, Finding Safe Lodging, & Resettlement.
Each focus area requires a specialized approach, and our volunteers are continually evolving to find the safest and most effective pathways for the people under our care. We observe all laws and applicable international conventions when conducting operations.
WE’VE COMPILED A LIST OF
The Challenges We Face
Most Afghans under our care have not been able to work since the collapse of the former regime in late 2021. Women who previously held jobs and could provide for their families are barred from employment in most sectors of the economy. Complicating the issue, the country is in the midst of an economic crisis, inflation is rampant, and exploitation from profiteering is massive. Funding at the individual family level is key to keeping them healthy and able to travel. Preparing the documents, paying for visas, and filing the appropriate paperwork on their behalf can be expensive as well. Finally, resettlement options in accepting communities is the toughest nut to crack.**
While most countries closed their doors to Afghan refugees, a few have kept the lamp burning.
We are continually looking for new pathways for final resettlement while reminding those nations who have made commitments to accept refugees of their pledges. The process is difficult, and we have had the best success when combining efforts with partner organizations and those international leaders with the courage to advocate for pathways.
FAQs
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When the US forces withdrew from Afghanistan and it became clear that additional support was needed to facilitate the safe evacuation of our Afghan allies, several non-profits came together to raise funds through an online fundraiser initiative called Project Flyaway. This became one of the largest crowd-sourced fundraisers of all time, raising millions of dollars to support the cause.
It became clear during this initiative that it was going to be necessary to continue to extract people from Afghanistan beyond the final ‘leave’ date of August 31st 2021. To that end, many leaders and volunteers involved with Project Flyaway decided to form a distinct non-profit committed to continuing the mission started by Project Flyaway, and Operation Snow Leopard was born.
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It felt appropriate and meaningful to name our organization in honor of Afghanistan’s National Animal - The Snow Leopard. These rare cats are known for their courage and resiliency, and symbolize the strength and determination we see everyday from the Afghans we strive to serve and help get evacuated to safety.
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We facilitate the extraction and resettlement of our most vulnerable Afghan allies by:
• Contracting private chartered flights for our families’ evacuation.
• Ensuring our evacuees have all the necessary paperwork & immigration support needed to depart Afghanistan.
• Safeguarding families by providing them with food, lodging, and medical care while they wait for evacuation
• Negotiating with host countries to secure lilly-pad and final landing destinations for evacuees.
• Communicating with our evacuees throughout the whole evacuation process to provide support and status updates.
• Fundraising to support all the aforementioned items.
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It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
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Although the US government successfully evacuated thousands of American allies before August 31st, 2021 (the date by which the US agreed to withdraw our military), there are still thousands of at-risk, vulnerable allies that need our help. We continue to work with the US government to ensure our efforts are sanctioned and supported by the appropriate parties.
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When Afghanistan began to fall to the Taliban, there were several non-for-profits involved in evacuation efforts. As time has passed the number of organizations supporting this effort has dwindled and so too, have the number of countries willing and able to accept and resettle these refugees. While the world struggles with integrating refugees, our Afghan brothers and sisters are being hunted and killed, or are dying from the harsh environmental conditions and lack of medical treatment.
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• 501c3 Status: We have secured 501c3 status in recognition of our ongoing efforts. Unlike other non-profits who were initially involved in evacuation efforts and are now refocusing their efforts elsewhere, we have a 24-month commitment to the continued evacuation of Afghan families. Our motto is “loyalty binds us” and we recognize the need to keep our mission alive.
• Humanitarian License (from Department of the Treasury): We have applied for a Humanitarian License from the Department of the Treasury, to formalize our efforts in Afghanistan and enable us to continue to provide humanitarian aid to the Afghan people.
• Credible, Vetted Partnerships: Understanding the importance of security and diplomacy, we only partner with credible organizations recognized by the DOD and DOS.
• Inclusive, Collaborative Approach: We know our success depends on our willingness to partner with other organizations. We pride ourselves on partnering with others to ensure the evacuation of as many Afghans as possible. We are happy to support other organizations’ success in their efforts as well as our own. Together, we will do more.
• In the Field Manpower: We have a multi-faceted, seasoned team of volunteers in the US managing our cases and a network of people in Afghanistan ensuring the safety and care of our evacuees
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When the Taliban overthrew the Afghan government, 19 million women immediately had their rights revoked, stolen, and cancelled. After 20 years of freedom of choice and unbound education, they were once again denounced and rendered personal property of men. This might seem like someone else’s problem but this is a serious human right issue which affects us all. In the space of a few short months, women are no longer able to receive an education, they may only leave their home if accompanied by a male family member, and they have been turned away from their workplaces if deemed to have a job considered inappropriate for women. A UN spokesperson said back in August 2021: “Many of these persons are in hiding as the Taliban continues to search homes door-to-door”, she said, “and there are serious concerns that such information gathering may led to them being targeted for reprisals. Searches, arrests, harassment, and intimidation, as well as seizures of property and reprisals are already being reported.”
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We are negotiating with multiple countries to arrange visas for our Afghan allies. This requires us to understand the varied and detailed criteria each country has regarding immigrants and negotiate with these nations to support our efforts.
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We adopted the standards set by the Department of State when requesting and compiling documentation for every family. Each family also has a sponsor who is either an organization we work with (like an NGO or government organization), an American citizen who knows them, or NATO Allied citizen who will vouch for them. We support the relocation of families and don’t want to separate parents and children, so we do help entire families when possible.
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No, we have not and never will negotiate with any terrorist organizations as defined by the US Government. We do not communicate with members of the Taliban, Haqqani network or ISIS-K. We only partner with people/organizations that are in good standing with the US government.
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We are one of the few organizations in this space who have successfully incorporated as a 501c3. Our EIN is: 87-254-6971. We are committed to having transparency in our financial reporting and have a compliance officer and treasurer who tracks all expenditures to ensure the funds donated are used in alignment with our commitments, while keeping our operational and administrative costs at a minimum. All donations are tax deductible.