SAN FRANCISCO — A soldier has welcomed to the United States his Afghan interpreter after buying him a plane ticket to ensure he would get in quickly to the United States amid concerns the Trump administration may expand its travel ban to Afghanistan.
Army Capt. Matthew Ball yelled out “Qismat!” as he ran and hugged Qismat Amin at the San Francisco airport Wednesday.
Ball says Amin protected his life during a yearlong mission in one of Afghanistan’s most dangerous areas.
The interpreter waited nearly four years for his special immigrant visa. He lived in hiding after receiving death threats from the Taliban for helping American troops.
Ball says Amin will live in Palo Alto at Ball’s home for now. Amin says Ball and other veterans who welcomed him are family to him.
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