January 4, 2022 9.26 am This story is over 26 months old

Man wants new start for his family in Lincoln after escaping Taliban

His family are temporarily in a hotel

A man who risked his life to slip past Taliban guards wants a permanent home in Lincoln with his family, where he previously spent two decades of his life.

Mohammed Taher is a British citizen who lived in Lincoln for around 20 years before returning to his homeland in Afghanistan with his wife and children, where he saw the Taliban “shooting so many people”.

He is desperate to return permanently to Lincoln, where he has friends and the offer of work. For now, it is a short visit for Mohammed and his family, who are being housed temporarily in a hotel in Hemel Hempstead.

Mohammed risked his life to slip past Taliban guards in Afghanistan. | Screenshot: BBC Look North

Mohammed escaped with his brothers, their families and his father, who are Afghan citizens and must wait until the Home Office allocates them a permanent place to settle.

He told BBC Look North: “This is my second home. Since I was 17-years-old I’ve been living in Lincoln. My kids were born in Lincoln as well and been in school here. I’ve got friends over here as well, that’s why I want to come back to Lincoln.”

A statement released to BBC Look North by the Home Office said: 
”There is a huge cross government effort under way to secure permanent homes for Afghan families, to allow them to settle, integrate into the local community and rebuild their lives as quickly as possible.”

Meanwhile, a Lincoln taxi driver told The Lincolnite last year “I can’t cope with this pain anymore”, over a month after attempting to save his family from the Taliban.