JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Abdul Wasi Rahmati escaped Afghanistan to Jacksonville less than 30 days ago. He is amid the thousands of Afghans at risk of Taliban retaliation for working for the United States government.
Rahmati spent more than a decade as an interpretative translator for the United States.
“I know that, probably, if I was in Kabul, those bad guys would look at us and kill us in front of our house,” said Abdul Wasi Rahmati. “I am thanking God that I am out here, and I am in a safe place. My family is in a safe place, and we are living,” Rahmati said.
Through the Special Immigrant Visa program, he was able to bring his five children and wife to Jacksonville within 15 months.
While his immediate family is safe, he fears for those back home.
“I’m concerned about my brothers and the others that are still there. The Taliban told them that nothing would happen but we cannot rely on that to be true,” Rahmati said.
Rahmati is working to bring his brothers, nieces, and nephews to America, but since the demand to come to America is so great he has not been able to get exact information on how to get them out.
President Biden said the military is working around the clock to evacuate everyone who is eligible. There also exists the viewpoint that the U.S. military should continue its occupation in the country, but Rahmati disagrees.
“I do not blame the United States because the United States came to support Afghanistan in order to stand on their own feet, not to be always their supporter.”
Are Afgan refugees headed to Jacksonville?
Matt Schmitt, associate director for Catholic Charities Jacksonville, visited The Morning Show on Monday to discuss the Afghan refugees that are expected to move to our area. Watch below.