Muslim ban: Badly burned Iraqi boy could be reunited with parents who are invited to US consulate interview
Dilbreen needed emergency surgery and was flown to the US last year. He ended up being stranded when his parents were stuck in Iraq
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Your support makes all the difference.A badly burned Iraqi boy who has been stranded in the US for months is one step closer to being reunited with his parents after Donald Trump’s Muslim ban has been halted by the courts.
Dilbreen, who was severely disfigured last year after a kerosene heater exploded in an Iraqi resettlement camp, flew to the US for emergency surgery with his father and nonprofit organisation Road to Peace last September.
As he recovered after surgery, his father, Ajil, had to return home to be with his wife as she gave birth.
The newborn baby’s visa was twice denied and the parents’ visas were then revoked.
But after receiving an invitation for an appointment at the US consulate this weekend, the parents are hopeful they will be able to soon rejoin Dilbreen in the US as he undergoes more surgery.
The dramatic turnaround comes one week after the same consulate cancelled their previous interview and said there would be no more appointments for 90 days.
The invite followed President Trump’s executive order which banned nearly all travellers from seven Muslim-majority countries, including Iraq, for 90 days.
Dilbreen’s family are Yazidis who fled an Isis-led genocide in August 2014. They have lived in camps ever since.
Sally Becker, director of Road to Peace who has worked with Dilbreen since day one, told The Independent it was difficult to understand why the boy’s parents had been invited for an appointment. She said the parents had not reapplied after they had been turned away last week, thinking the fight was hopeless.
"I don’t know whether this would have happened regardless [of Mr Trump’s travel ban being halted], whether it’s out of compassion or due to the enormous amount of press coverage we’ve received in the US," she said.
She said thet Michigan congressman Mike Bishop said he had received a call from the State Department, informing him the visas had been issued.
The family’s case has also received support from senators and organisations like Amnesty International, but progress has been slow.
Dilbreen came to the US last September for surgery to loosen the scar tissue around his mouth. The surgery allowed him to eat certain foods again and brush his teeth.
He does not have a nose and is prone to infection, and he is at risk of losing his sight.
"He’s a wonderful little boy. He touches hearts wherever he goes," said Ms Becker.
His father, Ajil, stayed by his son’s bedside 24 hours a day. He lost weight and also suffered from anxiety as he watched his son suffer and knew his pregnant wife was alone at home.
Before flying back to Iraq after the operation, he asked for Dilbreen not to undergo anymore surgery without his parents by his side as the young boy was already suffering from the trauma of separation from his mother.
For the last two months the child has been living in Michigan with Adlay Kejjin, director of the Yazidi American Women Organisation, an affiliate with Road to Peace.
Ms Becker ensured that Dilbreen got to know Ms Kejjin’s voice and face via FaceTime before he was taken to live with her.
It was supposed to be for two or three weeks.
Ms Becker said that working with Iraqi children was nothing to do with politics, but that politics might have had an impact of these children getting help.
The parents’ invitation to the consulate comes shortly after Mr Trump’s Muslim ban was halted by a federal judge in Washington. Mr Trump’s emergency appeal was denied, and the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit also ruled against Mr Trump on Thursday evening.
"Obviously I’m delighted that the US press seems to have got behind his case but there are many other children who need medical help," said Ms Becker.
"In fact we're aware of a specialist women and children's hospital in the KRI [Kuridstan region] that has capacity to help solve this problem and we're currently exploring options for funding support with our local partners."
There are 87 children in Iraq who are in need or urgent medical support, but Ms Becker said it had taken months to get help for just four of them, including Dilbreen. She expressed doubt that the UK would open its doors to the children, as it announced this week that it has limited the number of child refugees it would accept.
As for Dilbreen’s parents, Ms Becker is hopeful their visas will be approved and handed over on Sunday, so they can fly straight to the US.
“I only hope they’re not going to make that difficult journey again for nothing,” she said.
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