Airbnb Plans to Temporarily House 20,000 Afghan Refugees

As the crisis in Afghanistan continues, thousands of Afghans are desperately trying to flee the country and escape the rule of the Taliban. As of this past Monday, the U.S. has evacuated approximately 48,000 Afghans, but there are still thousands more trying to leave.

In order to help these new refugees, Airbnb’s Co-Founder and CEO, Brain Chesky, announced that the company would be temporarily housing 20,000 Afghan refugees. He made the announcement on Twitter and explained that the refugees would stay in the homes listed on Airbnb.com for free. Airbnb would reimburse the hosts.

Chesky urged anyone willing to host a refugee family to respond to him personally so he could connect them with the people at Airbnb who would “make it happen.”

He went on to describe the situation in Afghanistan as “one of the biggest humanitarian crises of our time” and wrote that Airbnb feels “a responsibility to step up.” Chesky hopes that other companies will follow his lead.

For more details, watch the video below.

This is not the first time Airbnb has helped out by housing people for free. During other times of crisis, the company has also houses people for free. To date, the company has housed approximately 75,000 people free of charge.

There aren’t any details about what length of time Airbnb plans to pick up the tab for Afghan refugees, but it is certainly a gesture that will help out many displaced people.

Do you think other businesses will follow Airbnb’s lead and step up to help Afghan refugees? How long do you think Airbnb will house the refugees for free? If you were an Airbnb host, would you be willing to host Afghan refugees?