24-year-old says parents, relative were feet from deadly blast astatine Kabul airdrome this week
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – As thousands hazard their ain information to fly Afghanistan amid the Taliban takeover, images of smiling families successfully arriving successful the U.S. underscore the ongoing anxiousness for galore inactive desperately moving to get their loved ones to safety.
One of those is College of Coastal Georgia nursing pupil Fahima Rastagar.
The 24-year-old was calved and raised successful Afghanistan and moved unsocial to the U.S. successful 2017 wherever she present lives connected St. Simons Island. She returned to Afghanistan for the archetypal clip successful May -- knowing it would beryllium the past time.
Her parents and relative are inactive successful Afghanistan, hoping to evacuate.
They astir got retired Thursday -- almost.
“My parent said, ‘I deliberation I’m going to the airport.’ And I said, ‘Mom, don’t spell to the airport.’ And she said, ‘We lone person 5 much days. … If there’s immoderate chance, past it’s this,’” Rastagar recalled.
Despite Rastagar’s pleas, her parents went to Kabul’s airport.
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Rastagar worked arsenic a translator with the U.S. subject earlier coming to America and she had different contacts that she reached retired to, trying to get her loved ones connected a level and retired of the country.
She said she was up each nighttime and felt helpless arsenic her household waited 36 hours astatine the airdrome -- nary food, nary slumber -- successful a assemblage of radical hoping to fly the country.
“Then, determination was a weaponry explosion. And they couldn’t get connected a plane. The gates were much closed, and they had to spell home. The weaponry detonation was conscionable so, truthful adjacent -- lone a fewer feet away,” an affectional Rastagar said.
Her parent was injured, falling and hurting her genu successful the chaos.
Left feeling hopeless, Rastagar is pleading for assistance from Rep. Buddy Carter and Sen. Jon Ossoff.
“I conscionable suffer. Tears autumn uncontrollably. I don’t cognize what to marque of it. My parents bash not merit this,” Rastagar said. “Put yourselves successful their shoes. It’s a hard situation. People are truthful desperate. They privation retired of Afghanistan. All those radical that died astatine the weaponry detonation (were) trying to get retired for a amended beingness and present they’ll never, ne'er get the chance.”
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Rastagar’s parents are present successful hiding from the Taliban, which is wherefore we person blurred their faces successful the photograph she shared with us. It was a selfie they took successful the assemblage waiting astatine the airport.
They told her the fighters are present going location to location checking fingerprints to find anyone who has been moving with the Americans. Rastagar is telling them to alteration locations arsenic overmuch arsenic they can.
“I don’t deliberation it’s going to instrumentality agelong earlier they’re found,” she said.
Rastagar said she has her Green Card and volition beryllium eligible to use for U.S. citizenship successful 2 months. Then she’ll beryllium capable to sponsor her parents and bring them here.
In the meantime, she’s asking for assistance to get the attraction of her lawmakers with a Change.org petition. Click present to work much about her communicative and motion the petition.
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The White House says the adjacent fewer days volition beryllium the astir unsafe play successful Afghanistan arsenic troops are bracing for different imaginable violent attack.
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