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Over 1,300 people from Afghanistan have resettled in CT since 2021. What resources are needed now?

Since the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan nearly two years ago, roughly 80,000 people have resettled in the country. According to the Connecticut Department of Social Services, "over 1,300 parolees, refugees, and Special Immigrant Visa Holders from Afghanistan have resettled in Connecticut since 2021."

The New Haven-based non-profit, Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services, or IRIS, recently opened a satellite office in Hartford to help meet the needs of the roughly 250 clients they serve in the area, many of whom recently left Afghanistan.

This hour, we hear from two people making the Hartford area a new home. Asadullah Jalal fled Afghanistan with his family of eight, now nine, and are resettling in West Hartford. Plus, we hear from Bridgeport-based refugee resettlement organization CIRI, and IRIS' soon-to-depart executive director Chris George joins us in-studio.

RELATED: Connecticut Mirror visuals journalist Yehyun Kim photographed and interviewed the Masoud family over nine months as they resettled in Connecticut.

For many refugees and immigrants, food is a love language that carries memory and tradition, while connecting people and building community. Chefs with Afghan roots at Sanctuary Kitchen, a New Haven-based non-profit, describe the power of food.

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Katie is a producer for Connecticut Public Radio's news-talk show 'Where We Live.' She has previously worked for CNN and News 8-WTNH.
Catherine is the Host of Connecticut Public’s morning talk show and podcast, Where We Live. Catherine and the WWL team focus on going beyond the headlines to bring in meaningful conversations that put Connecticut in context.