Forced to leave behind everything he knew, Mustafa embarked on a path fraught with fear yet driven by one powerful desire: to protect his family.
The reason I left Afghanistan was due to the threats that we were facing, both personally and against my extended family due to my past work with U.S. humanitarian organizations,” Mustafa explained.
With targets on their backs under the Taliban regime, Mustafa, his wife, and their 3 children fled to Pakistan, where they were joined by Mustafa’s siblings and parents. They lived without legal status, unable to work or provide for their families.
“It was very difficult for everyone who left Afghanistan without having a proper status in Pakistan,” he said.
After three years of living in limbo, hope overcame uncertainty in the form of resettlement to the United States through Arrive Ministries.
“That was the very best news for me and my family,” Mustafa said with a sigh of relief. The news meant leaving behind relatives still in Pakistan, but also the chance to offer his children the opportunity to attend school in safety.
My dream for my daughters is that they be able to study and get an education,” said Mustafa.
Upon arrival in the U.S., the family felt a sense of safety they had never experienced before.
“The first night, we had a very good night’s sleep. After all of these years of struggle, we knew there was a system in place that could protect us; we could call 9-1-1 if needed; that is something we never had before,” said Mustafa.
Once in constant fear for his children’s safety, Mustafa now proudly watches them attend school without worry of violence.
I felt like I was on top of the world when I saw them board the school bus,” he recalled. “I was finally not worried that something might happen to them.”
Though grateful, Mustafa remains concerned for his parents and siblings waiting in Pakistan, uncertain of their resettlement future, with no clear pathway forward.
The uncertainty around the change in the U.S. refugee process is greatly affecting us all.”
Mustafa works hard at a new security job he obtained with the assistance of an Arrive Ministries employment counselor and continues to live resiliently and sacrificially, guided by a father’s unwavering love.
