The inspiring story of a Marine infantry officer who arranged for a former Afghan interpreter and his family to be rescued from the hell outside of Kabul’s airport may ultimately have a tragic yet common ending.
Maj. Tom Schueman co-authored the book Always Faithful along with his former interpreter Zainullah “Zak” Zaki about how the two men formed a friendship in Afghanistan that culminated with Schueman working feverishly in August 2021 to make sure that Zak and his family would be among the 124,000 people rescued by the U.S. military after the Taliban captured Kabul.
But on Monday, Schueman announced on social media that Zak’s Special Immigrant Visa application had been denied for the final time, and now Zak and his family face the prospect of being deported, although it’s unclear if they might be sent back to Afghanistan.
