Immigration lawyer fears family safety in Iran after US strikes and pleads for resolution
By Ayron Lewallen
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BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (WVTM) — For many across the country, watching the situation in Iran unfold is a mix of fear and frustration. Some are worried that prolonging the conflict will only bring more suffering to everyday people who have no say in the decisions being made.
Attorney Michael Shabani fears the democracy Iran is fighting for would turn into turmoil and destruction if this continues. He said he already lost some loved ones during the war in Iraq, and he’s hoping the U.S. and Iran solve this conflict soon.
Shabani said the lack of communication has been the hardest part. With spotty service and long outages, he said families are left waiting — sometimes for weeks — without knowing whether their loved ones are safe.
Shabani, an immigration lawyer in central Alabama, has family who lives in Iran. He told WVTM 13 he hasn’t talked to his family in a month, except for a quick conversation with his uncle just two days ago.
While praying for his family’s safety, Shabani hopes no one else loses their life before the U.S. and Iran can come to an agreement. He feels the destruction these strikes caused is a waste, but the innocent lives lost are something he just can’t accept.
“Unfortunately, the history will show in Iraq when Saddam Hussein was there — in Libya, Syria and Afghanistan — we spent so much money and time and efforts there, and lots of our soldiers got killed,” Shabani said. “These people are suffering. They’re not having the infrastructure. They don’t have basic needs after 25 years. My biggest fear is that if this continues and something similar to that happens to Iran that Iran is going to be turned into a rubble like others, and I hate it.”
Shabani hopes the American people will use their voice and speak out against what’s happening in his home country.
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