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."

Image: Ali Hassan with Abdullah in a hospital in Sacramento. Pic: Council on American-Islamic Relations

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…

Original Article

[contf] [contfnew]

Sky News

[contfnewc] [contfnewc]