Mission Possible 2.0 — Rescue the Rescuers

Some of you may be familiar with the rescue mission called Mission Possible that evacuated 150+ dogs and 130+ cats from Afghanistan to safety in Canada on Feb 1st 2022. This was funded by very generous donations. This fundraiser is organized by the staff and volunteers at the temporary animal shelter at YVR Vancouver who worked with these animals for months, who have been made aware of the current situation that the ex-shelter staff, who rescued and took care of all these animals in Afghanistan, are in. We ask you to consider donating to help this wonderful group of people. 

This fundraiser will be going to Paws Unite People as they are taking on the costs of a group of Afghan animal rescuers and their families. PUP is a small Long Island, New York, dog shelter that is currently responsible for over 160 human lives and is bankrupting itself to care for them. Without our help, they will not survive. If PUP can’t afford to keep them housed in another country then they will be deported back to Afghanistan where their lives are in danger. Monthly operating costs for this large group are roughly $20,000 USD for food and housing, etc. 

Immediate goal: $4,000 USD will allow us to get 34 more ex-shelter staff out of danger in Afghanistan and into housing in another country. 

Backstory: 

We all watched in horror as the last US plane and soldiers left Kabul, Afghanistan at the end of August 2021, and the majority of the staff at an animal shelter who had been hoping to evacuate were left behind. The animals have safely made it to Canada, but the former staff are still waiting for help. PUP cares for them and managed to secure a very generous one-time private donation to cover the initial costs needed in order to get the group safe to another country while they wait for their visa processing. They recieved funds raised by Puppy Rescue Mission for them and a support grant from SPCA International, but all of those funds have been exhausted as there are delays in the US visa process. The refugees have been beaten and assaulted in Afghanistan, one of them had her face burned with hot water, one suffered a severe concussion, one had his spine injured so badly from a beating he had to have corrective surgery, and there were several who barely escaped after attempts on their life. They are being threatened if they return back there. PUP is continuing to work to evacuate the remainder that want to leave and are continuing to liaison with the US State Department and attorneys to document the people who still need to leave that lost their paperwork during the suicide bombing at HKIA in August so they can exit the country. This has been a huge undertaking for their tiny rescue, but these people are worth the effort. They are doing everything they can to help them. They have joined Afghan Evac Coalition and have made great strides in getting them safe - in particular, they have secured relatively inexpensive housing. The men, women, and children are NOT safe in Afghanistan. Their efforts AND THEIR LIVES should not be forgotten. Women cannot work. Hazara people are persecuted. Without their efforts, none of the animals that arrived in Canada would be safe. Paws Unite People is now their ONLY source of support. PUP is a tiny rescue and are doing their best to make sure these people stay alive and safe. They promised Dr Tahera and Akram, the 2 staff members who have made it to the USA, that they would make sure nobody is left behind. Help them honor that promise.