Upper West Side man reunited with wife,
kids after they evacuate Afghanistan
BY GABRIELE HOLTERMANN
Mohammed Wali was visibly
relieved to fi nally have his wife
and three children with him in
the United States after their harrowing
escape from Afghanistan as he embraced
Congressman Tom Suozzi in a long hug as
the two met outside his restaurant Arianna
on the Upper West Side on Sept. 8.
Wali, who came to the United States in
1992 and is an American citizen, reached
out to Suozzi’s offi ce on Aug. 16 to ask for
assistance to help evacuate his wife and
three children from Kabul, Afghanistan,
after the Taliban took over the capital.
His two older children, 8-year-old Omar
and 6-year-old Zahra, are American citizens,
and Wali has been working on securing
U.S. citizenship for his wife Aisha and
1-year-old Yasir.
He told Suozzi’s offi ce that his family
had gone to the airport in Kabul twice but
couldn’t get in. They were jostled by the
crowds, hearing gunshots, dehydrated, and
the kids had lost their shoes in the chaos.
Suozzi’s offi ce reached out to an array
of people on the ground in Kabul to help
the Wali family, who had made repeated
attempts to get inside the airport, escape
the mayhem that was unfolding in Kabul.
Finally, they reaached Adam Demarco,
who founded Allied Airlift, which helps US
citizens evacuate Afghanistan. Demarco’s
Mohammad Wali is grateful that Congressman Tom Suozzi helped his children
and wife escape from Afghanistan.
team of former military members coordinated
the escape with the US government
and the US Army on the ground.
They arranged a specifi c meet-up spot
outside the airport. To recognize the family,
including Wali’s brother-in-law, the family
had to put a red bandanna on 1-year-old
Yaris and hold him up, so Demarco’s team
could spot them among the desperate
masses outside Hamid Karzai International
Airport.
“This was really dramatic, if you think
about it,” the congressman who represents
PHOTO BY GABRIELE HOLTERMANN
parts of Queens and Long Island, said.
“You know the idea of all the crowds of
people, these young children, a scary environment,
beating heat. You don’t know
what’s gonna happen. You meet at a certain
time with a red bandana, gunfi re in the
background. Think about how scary this
must have been for the little kids.”
Throughout the family’s harrowing
two-week ordeal, Suozzi’s offi ce stayed in
touch with Demarco and the Wali family,
in NYC and Afghanistan, via text, email,
and WhatsApp.
Suozzi shared that it was a terrifying
experience for all involved until they knew
that the Wali family was escorted safely
into Karzai Airport on Aug. 21; they wound
up missing the deadly terrorist attack on
Aug. 26 by fi ve days.
From Kabul, Wali’s wife, children, and
brother-in-law fl ew to Qatar and then
Ramstein Air Base in Germany. The Wali
family fi nally reunited in the United States
late last week, two weeks after fi rst reaching
out to Suozzi’s offi ce.
“As soon as I heard from the Wali family
and learned that their eight and 6-year-old
children were American citizens, I knew
we had to do all we could to get them out of
Kabul,” Suozzi said. “For 12 days straight
and at all hours of the day and night, we
were in constant contact with them. We
found the amazing Adam Demarco, who
had a team on the ground in Kabul, and
working together. We did not give up until
we got them safely home.”
Mohammed Wali shared that his wife
was afraid to lose the kids in the masses
surrounding the airport.
“This was not a safe place,” Wali said.
“People died in front of my family.”
He said it means a lot to him that he is
reunited with this wife and kids and has
plans to move to Long Island.
“I got another life,” Wali said. “I try to
put my kids in the right school so they have
a great, bright future.”
Harlem Dance Club to host MOTHERSHIP festival this weekend
BY EMILY DAVENPORT
An annual Harlem dance
festival is returning with
a bang later this Saturday.
MOTHERSHIP THREE takes
participants on an interactive voyage
through music and dance,
combining afro-dance, hip-hop,
vogue, house, praise and so much
more in an open-air celebration
of sound and community. Hosted
by Harlem Dance Club, the event
will take place on Sept. 18.
“Harlem Dance Club’s annual
MOTHERSHIP festival is
a celebration of the healing that
occurs when we come together as
a community to honor art, music
and dance. We hope the joy it
brings is a welcome respite for
the realities of a very challenging
year,” said John Doyle, Artistic
Director and co-founder of Harlem
Dance Club.
Doors will open at 3 p.m. with
a set from DJ Steph Stylez, followed
by guest performances at
4 p.m. At 4:30, guests can enjoy
PHOTO COURTESY OF HARLEM DANCE CLUB
the premiere of the Harlem Dance
Club’s “Believe,” followed by the
MOTHERSHIP THREE Mini
Ball at 5 p.m. DJ KS 360 and DJ
Johnny D will take the stage at 6
p.m. and 7 p.m., respectively.
MOTHERSHIP THREE will
also feature performances from
Neko Milan, Area Collective, Bad,
Sanskriti Dance, Batala New York,
Fanny System, and Cesar Valentino.
The event is made possible
with support from the NYC Department
of Parks and Recreation,
Upper Manhattan Empowerment
Zone Development Corporation,
Lower Manhattan Cultural Council,
New York State Council on
the Arts, and the New York City
Department of Cultural Affairs in
partnership with the City Council.
MOTHERSHIP THREE is
free to the public but you should
register online ahead of time. For
more information, visit harlemdanceclub.
org.
10 September 16, 2021 Schneps Media