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Central Valley Man, 12-Year Old Daughter Stranded Abroad Due To Trump Ban

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SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – A Central Valley man and his 12-year-old daughter are stranded in the Horn of Africa due to President Donald Trump's executive order banning travel from seven mostly Muslim countries.

12-year-old Eman Ali is the daughter of two United States citizens, and the sister of two more. Her family lives in Los Banos, where her father manages a supermarket.

Eman had been living in Yemen with her grandparents, waiting six years for an immigrant visa, so she can move to California and become a US citizen.

She finally got that visa last week. Her father Ahmed went to get Eman, but they were stopped on Saturday at the airport in Djibouti.

Katy Lewis, a San Francisco-based lawyer representing the Ali's, said they are stranded and bewildered.

"Why is this happening? This doesn't make sense. We went through the correct legal means to obtain this. We waited in line," Lewis told KCBS.

Congressman Jim Costa (D-Fresno) demanded on the House floor Wednesday that they be let in.

"This 12-year-old girl Eman has been extremely vetted for six years. She is not a threat to our country. Let her join her American family," Costa said.

A federal judge in Los Angeles ordered the government to allow the girl in, but so far it won't.

"This case highlights how flawed the executive order is," Lewis said.

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