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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Miriam Burrell

Afghan mother-of-two says living in London hotel ‘like a prison’ amid affordable housing shortage

London Prison Home Office Louise Ryan Claire Holland IRC Standard United Kingdom

Afghan mum Zahra Shaheer, 32, spent six months in a hotel before moving to a home

(Picture: Elena Heatherwick for the IRC)

A single mother of two who fled Afghanistan when Kabul fell to the Taliban says living in a Watford hotel for six months was “like a prison”.

Former television news anchor Zahra Shaheer is one of thousands of Afghan refugees who have lived in hotels for months on end while waiting for permanent accommodation.

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