A Christian Syrian family who were among the first to be caught up in Donald Trump's travel ban when they were turned back to the Middle East from the US on January 28 were emotionally reunited with their relatives yesterday.
Six members of the Orthodox Christian Assali family who were seeking to be reunited with their US-based family after 13 years were put on a plane to Qatar despite arriving with visas and green cards.
Their return to Kennedy airport in New York came after a the government declined to oppose a lawsuit on their behalf and a federal judge on Saturday temporarily overturned Trump's ban. Word reached the family that they could enter the US with green cards.
Last night the family, who spell their second names differently, were enjoying a celebratory meal. Mathyo Asali, who had returned to Damascus and thought he would be inducted into the Syrian military, believing his life was "ruined", was ecstatic yesterday to be back on US soil along with five relatives.
"It's really nice to know that there [are] a lot of people supporting us," Asali told Governor Tom Wolf, who greeted the family at a relative's house in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
"Today we woke up to a new dream, and I am so thankful that they are...safe with us," said Sarmad Assali, a US-based member of the family. "It took a lot of hard work to put today together."
Earlier, at Kennedy airport, Ghassan Assali spoke of his emotion as he waited for his family to arrive from the Middle East. "I'm too emotional, you know," Ghassan said. "I'm going to cry."
Twenty-year-old Sarah Assali said she felt nervous on the plane to New York. Her aunt, Sarmad, translated her words from Arabic to English. "She was very scared, and really worried that they weren't going to make it here, even though they were on the road," Sarmad said. "She's very thankful to everyone that helped them get here."
Outside JFK airport, Republican Congressman Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania, who has criticised Trump's travel ban, said the Assalis' story shows that many Americans want to welcome Syrians.
"We're celebrating the rule of law today," Dent said. "We're celebrating fairness and justice. And most of all, we're celebrating a wonderful family."
"And hopefully tomorrow is a new day, where we start with school registration, and we build our future," Sarmad said.
She hopes that one day they may return to a more peaceful Damascus. But for now the family wants to build a future in the US.
