“It’s not a rank thing, it’s not a duty – it’s just being another human,” Sgt. Simranjeet Lidder said about stepping up to help Afghan refugees.
Sgt. Lidder is one of the few female Cav Scouts and the first assigned to Fort Bliss. Born in Tehran, she speaks Dari, a language spoken in parts of Afghanistan and she is currently working as an interpreter for Operation Allies Refuge.
Operation Allies Refuge began in July as the government of Afghanistan collapsed and the U.S. prepared to accept several thousand evacuees. The U.S. military deployed some 6,000 troops to Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport to evacuate American citizens, Special Immigration Visa holders, and other Afghan refugees, many of whom helped U.S. troops during America's nearly 20-year war.
America was able to transport more than 123,000 evacuees out of Afghanistan as part of the mission, in one of the largest airlifts in history.
Related
From Kabul, some evacuees were sent to Fort Bliss in Texas to begin the first phase of their resettlement. As the Afghans began landing at Fort Bliss, one refugee went into labor and an interpreter went with her to the hospital. Sgt. Lidder and her teammates then had to step up and continue to process the others.
“So far our team is really killing it,” Sgt. Lidder said in an Army press release. “It definitely is a big honor and a pleasure to have the opportunity.”
The Persian-American soldier immigrated prior to the 9/11 attacks, which was part of her inspiration for enlisting.
“I wanted to serve my country, not for the pay or benefits but only for the pride of my red, white, blue, and the uniform,” she said. “I also wanted to discount the negative stereotypes that people have with Middle East-born individuals.”
Want to get more connected to the stories and resources Connecting Vets has to offer? Click here to sign up for our weekly newsletter. Reach Jack Murphy: jack@connectingvets.com or @JackMurphyRGR.
Related
Related
