Home Office backs down on asylum refusal for female Afghan activist

The Home Office initially told ‘Mina’: ‘It is considered you do not face a real risk of persecution or harm on your return to Afghanistan.’ Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images

An Afghan woman who risked her life defending human rights in her home country has been allowed to stay in the UK after a Home Office U-turn.

The Guardian previously reported on the case of Mina*, whose asylum claim was rejected by the Home Office despite her high-profile work in Afghanistan. She worked for western government-backed projects and was involved in training and mentoring women across the country, which put her in grave danger even before the Taliban took over in 2021.