The British government has admitted it secretly resettled 4,500 Afghans after a massive data breach exposed the personal details of over 18,000 individuals who worked with the U.K. in Afghanistan before the Taliban’s return to power. The breach, which occurred in 2022 but was kept from the public through a sweeping court injunction, was only acknowledged in Parliament on Tuesday by Defence Secretary John Healey.

Healey revealed that the previous government under Prime Minister Rishi Sunak secured a "super injunction" to block media reporting on the breach, which involved an official mistakenly emailing sensitive data outside secure channels. The file contained names and personal information of applicants to the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy, along with their family members.

The breach only came to light in August 2023 after data on nine individuals surfaced on social media. In response, the government launched a secret relocation initiative, the "Afghan Response Route," costing approximately $537 million to date. Another 600 people are still due for resettlement.

Healey criticized the lack of transparency around the breach and the government’s use of legal measures to suppress information. He confirmed that the court order was lifted on Tuesday and issued a formal apology to those affected.

A government report concluded that the Taliban had shown little intent to pursue retribution based on the data leak, and that the exposed information was unlikely to lead to targeted reprisals.

The disclosure comes amid heightened political tensions over immigration in Britain, following increases in legal migration and ongoing debates over asylum seekers arriving via the Channel.

Healey stated that although the program had been kept secret, the number of Afghans admitted was reflected in official immigration figures.