Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
August 3, 2017
The father of one of the Afghan teenagers who made headlines when trying to attend a robotics competition in the United States has died in this week’s suicide attack on a mosque in western Afghanistan, her family says.
Fatema Qaderyan and her teammates competed in the FIRST Global Challenge international youth event in Washington last month.
Qaderyan is the team’s captain.
The girls caught the world’s attention after they were twice denied U.S. visas. The team was eventually granted entry one week before the competition after an intervention by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.
Qaderyan’s older brother told the AFP news agency on August 3 that their father died in the attack in the city of Herat two days earlier.
“We are all devastated; Fatema hasn’t eaten or spoken since the incident, and is in a state of shock,” Mohammad Reza said.
At least 32 people were killed and more than 60 injured by a suicide bomber and gunman who targeted a Shi’ite mosque in Herat in an attack claimed by the extremist group Islamic State.
Based on reporting by AFP and Al-Jazeera