LONDON, U.K.: The British government secretly launched a large-scale relocation scheme for Afghans after a soldier accidentally leaked the personal data of more than 33,000 individuals, exposing them to potential Taliban reprisals, newly unsealed court documents show.

The breach, which occurred in early 2022 but was only discovered in August 2023 when some of the data appeared on Facebook, involved the names and details of thousands of Afghans who had worked with British forces before the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.

According to a High Court judgment from May 2024, made public for the first time this week, up to 20,000 people may need to be relocated to Britain, a move that could cost "several billion pounds."

Defence Minister John Healey said about 4,500 affected people are now in the UK or in transit, at a cost of roughly 400 million pounds so far. A Ministry of Defence (MoD) review also revealed that as of May 2024, over 16,000 people affected by the breach had already been relocated.

The legal and financial consequences are expected to mount further, with lawsuits pending from individuals affected by the breach.

The incident had been kept under wraps due to a superinjunction granted in 2023. The former Conservative government argued that disclosure could endanger lives. The injunction was lifted following a review by the new government under Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was elected in July.

The breach affected nearly 19,000 Afghans and their families who had applied to relocate under UK schemes. The MoD has since admitted the breach occurred when a dataset was mistakenly released.

While a government review confirmed Afghanistan remains dangerous, it found little evidence of a systematic Taliban campaign of retribution against those named.