While the current Muslim ban does not include Afghanistan, we all know that it very well could in short order. Former Army Ranger Capt. Matthew Ball, who returned from Afghanistan a few years ago, didn’t forget a young man named Qismat Amin who had risked his life along side Capt. Ball—and continued to risk his life—to help the United States Army as an interpreter.
Mr Amin reportedly went into hiding after receiving death threats from the Taliban for working with American troops.
His visa arrived two days after President Donald Trump signed an executive order suspending the US refugee programme and temporarily banning immigration from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.
Amin flew into San Francisco International Airport yesterday as Capt. Ball bought Amin a ticket and told him to get on a plane for fear the Bannon/Trump restrictions could quickly be extended.
“We spent every day together,” Ball said. “There’s not like a single moment when Qismat jumped out in front of a bullet for me, but I couldn’t have done the job without him.”
As Amin’s visa application went into limbo, Ball and his law school classmates got busy, writing letters to members of Congress and publicizing the plight of Afghans who put their lives on the line to work with Americans.
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“He wasn’t fighting alongside us because he wanted a ticket here,” Ball said. “I don’t think there’s better vetting than being alongside American soldiers for five years.”
If every politician who has signed off on sending young men and women to war had to be vetted like Mr. Amin was, there would be a lot less war and probably more democracy-minded legislators.