President Trump’s ban on Syrians entering the US is not ironclad—on Thursday, a mother and her two daughters from the war-torn country were able to land at Kennedy Airport, where they enjoyed a tearful reunion.
Fadi Kassar, 40, of Milford, Conn., sobbed as he greeted his arriving wife and daughters Hanan, 8, and Lian, 5, the Hartford Courant reported.
“I’m very happy to see my family,” he told reporters after a long embrace—the family had been separated for more than two years.
Kassar had immigrated to Connecticut in 2015, after slipping into the US over the Mexican border and being held in a Texas detention center, ultimately being granted asylum.
His wife, Razan Alghandour, and daughters meanwhile moved to Jordan, submitting to two years of paperwork and vetting before they were cleared to join Kassar in the US.
According to the Courant, the mother and daughters started on their journey to the US just as Trump’s executive order took effect. They were stopped at an airport in Ukraine last week; their visas were revoked and they were sent back to Jordan.
It took the intercession of US Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)—who shared the family’s story on the Senate floor Monday night—and several international refugee organizations to reunite the family.
The US charity HIAS stepped in to help the family last Saturday, when the mother and daughters were blocked in Kiev. The organization said the family members may be the first Syrians to get through during the ban.
“HIAS brought together government officials, faith leaders and other influential figures to partner in this effort,” the organization said in a statement.
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