AN Afghan refugee in Albury-Wodonga has told of his fears for his family, including his wife and son, 4, stuck in Kabul as the Taliban sweeps back into power.
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Waly, not his real name, came to Australia in 2013 after being in a camp in Pakistan and then travelling from Indonesia by boat.
The 29 year-old flew to a second country and married his wife and had a son and most recently saw them in 2019 but they had not been allowed to come to Australia and are in Kabul with his mother and three sisters.
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"They're terrified, they're staying in their house, they can't go anywhere," he said.
Given the Taliban's horrific treatment of women, Waly dreads what may occur and has little faith in the militants declaring they had changed.
"They saying 'it's now safe and we protect people and do the right thing', but it's not true," Waly said.
"They have a policy that they do what they want.
"In our village they always had power, that's why I left my country and family and came to Australia."
Rural Australians for Refugees Border president Penny Vine wants the federal government to take more people from Afghanistan.
"I think it's a no-brainer really and the Hazara group of people are vulnerable and will continue to be vulnerable," she said.
Member for Indi Helen Haines has made no comment on accepting refugees, but she had written to the Home Affairs Minister with concerns about the slowness of help for those who helped our forces in Afghanistan.
She called the Taliban's ascendancy "heartbreaking and devastating" and particularly for Afghans and veterans in the North East.
Dr Haines urged current and former soldiers and their families to seek help if needed through Open Arms on 1800 011 046.
