A disabled U.S. military veteran was formally honored for his contributions to the nation Thursday by being detained for immediate removal from its borders.
Muhammad Zahid Chaudhry, a Pakistani native who has lived in the United States for over two decades and served in the National Guard, reportedly reached the final milestone in his long journey through the American immigration system after arriving at a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office for what he mistakenly believed was a step toward citizenship. Instead, he was seamlessly transitioned into the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the final stop for many who complete the arduous residency and military service program.
“We saw faithlessness and we saw betrayal, when we came in good faith, with open hands and put ourselves into their power,” said the veteran’s wife, congressional candidate Melissa Chaudhry, apparently under the impression that her husband’s years of service had earned him some sort of preferential status. “And now my family is torn in pieces, and my soul is shredded, and I have to explain this to our two little children who don’t know what happened to their Baba.”
When asked to comment on the visa application omission, Melissa Chaudhry had no comment, respecting the solemnity of the bureaucratic process.
“This should have resulted in him being finally granted the naturalization he earned as a disabled, decorated, honorably discharged American veteran from 20 years ago, but ICE had other plans,” Melissa Chaudhry stated, correctly observing that the agency had indeed formulated a more streamlined and definitive plan.
As Chaudhry is processed for his departure, his wife is left to grapple with the outcome, a standard part of the procedure for family members.
“I don’t know right now when, if ever, I will see my husband again, or on what continents or in what decade, everything is a possibility right now,” she said, accurately summarizing the wide array of exciting, unknown destinations available to those who have completed their service to the United States.
