Airbnb to temporarily house 20,000 Afghan refugees for free

The accommodation platform has announced it will house Afghan refugees around the world free of charge as thousands of people flee the country.

Airbnb has announced that it will temporarily house 20,000 Afghan refugees around the world free of charge.

The refugees will be housed in properties that are already listed on Airbnb’s platform and volunteered by hosts, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said on Twitter.

The cost of the stays will be funded by the company and contributions made by Mr Chesky, who reportedly has a net worth of about $17 billion, as well as other donations made to the Airbnb.org Refugee Fund.

The company said it’s collaborating with resettlement agencies and will evolve its support as necessary. It also urged other businesses “to provide immediate support to Afghan refugees”.

“As tens of thousands of Afghan refugees resettle around the world, where they stay will be the first chapter in their new lives,” Mr Chesky said in a statement. “For these 20,000 refugees, my hope is that the Airbnb community will provide them with not only a safe place to rest and start over, but also a warm welcome home.”

It’s unclear how long the temporary housing will be provided for.

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The cost of the stays will be funded by Airbnb and contributions made by CEO Brian Chesky. Picture: Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images

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Over this past weekend, Airbnb.org – which is a non-profit focused on facilitating temporary stays for people in moments of crisis like natural disasters – managed to place 165 refugees in safe housing shortly after touching down in the US, the company said.

Last week, the non-profit said it gave emergency funding and support to the International Rescue Committee, the Jewish American non-profit HIAS and Church World Service to provide immediate temporary stays via the Airbnb platform for up to 1000 arriving Afghan refugees.

“As the IRC helps to welcome and resettle Afghans in the US, accessible housing is urgently needed and essential,” IRC CEO David Miliband said in a statement.

On Monday, US officials said they have evacuated roughly 48,000 people from Afghanistan in recent days, while thousands remain in the country, which has fallen back under Taliban control.

Most of the evacuees are Afghans fearful of the Islamic fundamentalist group. Nearly 4000 Americans also have been rescued, a US official told The Post on Monday.

The primary point of evacuation from Afghanistan is Kabul Airport, but the Taliban have set up roadblocks, making it difficult for fleeing residents to get to the rescue flights.

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Belongings of Afghan people, who were evacuated from Kabul, lay on the ground after disembarking from a plane. Airbnb managed to place 165 refugees in safe housing shortly after touching down in the US. Picture: Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images

Those who have made it to the airport face massive crowds that are gathered in immense heat. Children have reportedly been trampled to death amid the crush of people.

The US has committed to withdrawing all US forces, even from the airport, by August 31, and the Taliban has warned President Biden that it will hold him to that deadline, stoking concerns that many who want to flee the country will be stuck there.

“The displacement and resettlement of Afghan refugees in the US and elsewhere is one of the biggest humanitarian crises of our time,” Mr Chesky wrote on Twitter. “We feel a responsibility to step up.”

“I hope this inspires other business leaders to do the same. There’s no time to waste.”

This story originally appeared on the New York Post and is reproduced here with permission