Latest news with #TaahirShaikh
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The Independent
9 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Texas man returns from honeymoon alone after wife is arrested by ICE in US Virgin Islands
A recently-married Texas couple has spent over 120 days apart after the bride was detained by ICE during their honeymoon in the US Virgin Islands. Taahir Shaikh of Arlington says his wife, Ward Sakeik, was detained by ICE in February in St. Thomas, despite having a pending green card application and documentation of her stateless status. 'She's considered stateless, which essentially just means you're born in a country that doesn't give you birthright citizenship. And since she was a Palestinian refugee that was born in Saudi Arabia, they weren't recognized as Saudi nationals,' Shaikh told NBC DFW. Shaikh said Sakeik was just 8 years old when her family arrived in the U.S. on a visa. Although their asylum request was denied, her lack of citizenship meant the government couldn't deport them. Instead, they were placed under an order of supervision and required to check in with immigration authorities once a year. Sakeik was just 8 when her family arrived in America on a visa, her husband told the outlet. Although their asylum request was denied, their lack of citizenship meant the government couldn't deport them. Instead, they were placed under an order of supervision and required to check in with immigration authorities once a year. Since then, Sakeik has graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington and now works as a wedding photographer. She has always complied with immigration rules for 14 years, Shaikh said. Sakeik is currently being held at Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado after spending months detained in McAllen, as her green card application remains stalled due to her detention. The couple has spent the first months of their marriage communicating through weekly visits and video calls. 'She constantly says, 'When I get through this phase of my life, what am I not able to endure after this?'' Shaikh told the outlet about his wife. He says they carefully chose to travel to the U.S. Virgin Islands for their honeymoon, believing it wouldn't jeopardize her pending immigration status. The couple's legal team is doing everything possible to prevent her from being deported. Though stateless individuals in removal proceedings are typically eligible for release after 90 days, Sakeik has now been held for over 120. ICE addressed Sakeik's arrest in a statement to NBC DFW, writing, 'The arrest of Ward Sakeik was not part of a targeted operation by ICE. She chose to leave the country and was then flagged by CBP trying to re-enter the U.S. 'The facts are she is in our country illegally. She overstayed her visa and has had a final order by an immigration judge for over a decade. President Trump and Secretary Noem are committed to restoring integrity to the visa program and ensuring it is not abused to allow aliens a permanent one-way ticket to remain in the U.S.' ICE concluded, 'She had a final order of removal since 2011. Her appeal of the final order was dismissed by the Board of Immigration Appeals on February 12, 2014. She has exhausted her due process rights and all of her claims for relief have been denied by the courts.'
Daily Mail
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Bride was overjoyed to marry love of her life... until ICE spotted her as she arrived in US Virgin Islands for HONEYMOON
A delighted newlywed arrived in the US Virgin Islands for a honeymoon with her handsome husband, only to be abruptly detained by ICE and taken into custody. Ward Sakeik, from Arlington, Texas, remains in ICE detention after she was arrested in February when she and her new husband Taahir Shaikh were stopped by authorities on St Thomas Shaikh said the couple had just arrived to begin their honeymoon when photographer wife was detained, despite having proof of a unique circumstance documents and a pending green card application. 'The past 12 months of my life has just been the highest of the highs and the lowest of the lows,' he told NBC5. 'You go from buying your first home, planning your dream wedding, attending that wedding, going on your honeymoon, to being separated for over 120 days.' Sakeik was born in Saudi Arabia as a Palestinian refugee. She has been considered stateless her whole life because Saudi officials did not recognize her as a national. She was eight when her family came to the US to apply for asylum, but when the asylum request was denied, the US couldn't deport them because they had no citizenship. Instead, Sakeik's family were given an order of supervision and were required to check in with immigration officials annually, leaving her in a legal limbo that was only discovered when she went on her honeymoon. Sakeik was born in Saudi Arabia as a Palestinian refugee, and has been stateless her whole life after US officials rejected her family's asylum application when she was eight but allowed them to stay in the country Living her whole life as a stateless person living in the US, Shaikh said his wife has always complied with the annual immigration check-ups and never expected to be detained. Shaikh said they believed the US Virgin Islands was a safe location for them to travel to celebrate their nuptials. 'We felt we did our due diligence, and we were very intentional. There's a reason we chose the U.S. Virgin Islands,' he said. Sakeik, a graduate of UT Arlington and a wedding photographer, was taken to Texas after she was detained in the Caribbean. She spent several months in the McAllen Detention Center in Texas, and is now in Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas. As newlyweds, the couple said their first months as a married couple have been far from what they expected when they tied the knot at the start of the year. Shaikh said they can only communicate through video calls and weekly visitations. 'She constantly says, 'When I get through this phase of my life, what am I not able to endure after this?'' he said. According to the Center for Migration Studies, when a stateless person is detained they can be released from custody after 90 days. But Sakeik has been held for over 120 days, and her new husband says he has received no communication from ICE officials. Her green card application will also remain on hold while she is detained, and the couple say they are hiring immigration lawyers in hopes that she can be freed. 'I need people to realize that this is someone who has complied every year for 14 years and has always sought to be able to build lawful permanent residence,' Shaikh said. 'But when you're stateless, you don't have that luxury. Now that you're finally at the finish line, why would you take it away.'
