A critically-ill boy has died 10 days after his mother finally won a 17-month legal battle to visit him in the United States.
Shaima Swileh saw two-year-old Abdullah in hospital for the first time on 19 December, after the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) sued the Trump administration – fighting for Ms Swileh to be granted a waiver from the president's travel ban.
Abdullah, who had a genetic brain disorder, died at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital in Oakland, California, where he had been on life support.
His father, Ali Hassan, said the family was "heartbroken", adding: "We had to say goodbye to our baby, the light of our lives."
Like his father, Abdullah was an American citizen, and Mr Hassan took him to California in the autumn to seek treatment as his condition worsened.
The couple – married in war-torn Yemen in 2016 before moving to Egypt – have been trying to get Ms Swileh a visa since 2017 so the family could move together to California.
Ms Swileh is not a US citizen and remained in Egypt while fighting for a visa.
More from California
People from Yemen and four other mostly Muslim countries, along with North Korea and Venezuela, are currently restricted from visiting the US.
More follows…
A critically-ill boy has died 10 days after his mother finally won a 17-month legal battle to visit him in the United States.
Shaima Swileh saw two-year-old Abdullah in hospital for the first time on 19 December, after the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) sued the Trump administration – fighting for Ms Swileh to be granted a waiver from the president's travel ban.
Abdullah, who had a genetic brain disorder, died at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital in Oakland, California, where he had been on life support.
His father, Ali Hassan, said the family was "heartbroken", adding: "We had to say goodbye to our baby, the light of our lives."
Like his father, Abdullah was an American citizen, and Mr Hassan took him to California in the autumn to seek treatment as his condition worsened.
The couple – married in war-torn Yemen in 2016 before moving to Egypt – have been trying to get Ms Swileh a visa since 2017 so the family could move together to California.
Ms Swileh is not a US citizen and remained in Egypt while fighting for a visa.
More from California
People from Yemen and four other mostly Muslim countries, along with North Korea and Venezuela, are currently restricted from visiting the US.
More follows…
