Pregnant American Woman Trapped in Afghanistan Is Losing Faith: 'Am I Going to End Up Dying Here?'
The deadline to withdraw Americans from Afghanistan has passed, and many U.S. citizens and Afghan allies alike have been left behind.
Among the White House’s estimate of 100 to 200 Americans stranded by President Joe Biden’s abysmal foreign policy disaster is Nasria, a 25-year-old pregnant American citizen from California who fears for her future.
Nasria described her ordeal in an interview with VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb, asking that only her first name be used out of concerns for her safety.
“There’s been days where, you know, I think to myself, am I going to make it home? Am I going to end up living here? Am I going to end up dying here? What’s gonna happen?” Nasria said during the interview.
“Nasria came to the Afghan capital of Kabul in June to visit family and marry her longtime boyfriend,” Babb said in the video.
Although she and her husband fled to the airport after the Taliban seized control of the country, the two never made it through.
“It was so hard to just get on a plane,” Nasria said. “There was a couple of days where we had to sleep on streets.”
The deadly ISIS suicide bombing of Aug. 26 that claimed the lives of 13 U.S. service members threw a wrench in their plans when her flight out of the country was canceled.
Nasria worked out alternate evacuation arrangements with U.S. State Department officials, but these ultimately fell through during the final days of the withdrawal.
“[The State Department] told us, ‘Go to a certain location. You will be picked up’ — and this is from the State Department — ‘You will get picked up. Go there,'” she told VOA.
“And it was in the middle of the road across the airport, so we went there, waited an extra 12 to 13 hours with no food, no water, nothing.”
She tried time and again to get into Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport by showing her U.S. passport to Taliban members, but was denied access repeatedly.
During the American evacuation attempt that spanned the second half of August, the military managed to evacuate approximately 124,000 civilians, including 6,000 Americans, according to The Epoch Times.
President Joe Biden, in a Tuesday address, offered an estimate of just how many Americans were left behind following the botched withdrawal.
“Now we believe that about 100 to 200 Americans remain in Afghanistan with some intention to leave. Most of those who remain are dual citizens, long-time residents who had earlier decided to stay because of their family roots in Afghanistan,” Biden said, according to an official White House transcript.
He elaborated further to make the situation seem even more appealing.
“The bottom line: Ninety-eight percent of Americans in Afghanistan who wanted to leave were able to leave. And for those remaining Americans, there is no deadline.
“We remain committed to get them out if they want to come out. Secretary of State Blinken is leading the continued diplomatic efforts to ensure a safe passage for any American, Afghan partner, or foreign national who wants to leave Afghanistan.”
Other numbers conflict with Biden’s 100 to 200 estimate, however.
The Epoch Times, in a separate piece, noted that private groups and former military personnel estimate there may be many more Americans stranded — even thousands.
Is it just the Biden administration trying to cover up its mess?
Possibly, but the truth remains, regardless: People like Nasria need our help, and they need people to take a stand for their chance at deliverance.
Thankfully, some officials, including Republican Rep. Darrell Issa of California, have had Nasria’s case brought to their attention.
“Nasria, a pregnant American citizen, has braved beatings and harassment by the Taliban trying to get past their checkpoints to return to the US. This is one of the individuals we continue to help. All should know the Americans left behind in Afghanistan by President Biden,” Issa wrote on Twitter.
Nasria, a pregnant American citizen, has braved beatings and harassment by the Taliban trying to get past their checkpoints to return to the US. This is one of the individuals we continue to help. All should know the Americans left behind in Afghanistan by President Biden.
— Rep. Darrell Issa (@repdarrellissa) September 1, 2021
Meanwhile, Republicans continue to press the Biden administration to find ways to bring these “stragglers” home.
People like Nasria could die if the situation doesn’t change. They could face years of oppression and be subjugated to torture or religious extremist ideology — which could place women or those of other faiths in the Taliban’s sights — or they could resort to hiding as long as they can.
Who knows what horrors they might endure?
We’ve seen and heard horror stories so far as Taliban fighters have beaten people in the streets of Kabul and begun to crack down on protests over women’s rights.
That’s only the tip of the iceberg.
No one should be subjected to this — no Afghan civilian, no European ally, no American.
But it is our duty to get our own out of the country, to help deliver them from the evils of Islamic extremism.
Who will step up to save them?
We can only hope the Biden administration will get its priorities straight.
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