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Ward Sakeik smiles after mentioning her husband, Taahir Shaikh, during her press conference July 3 at the Wyndham Hotel in Irving, Texas. Sakeik was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for almost five months.<\/p>\n
Photo by Natanael Mazariego<\/a><\/p>\n Ward Sakeik has no country to call home outside the U.S.<\/p>\n When U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement took the 22-year-old woman of Palestinian descent, a UTA alumna, into custody in February, she didn\u2019t know where she would go. After over 140 days in detention and two failed deportation attempts, Sakeik was released Tuesday evening to her home in Arlington. <\/p>\n Sakeik was born in Saudi Arabia, which does not automatically grant citizenship to children of foreigners. When she was eight, her family moved to the U.S. <\/p>\n ICE has allowed them to remain in North Texas under supervision.<\/p>\n For 15 years, Sakeik and her family have regularly checked in with ICE\u2019s Dallas agency. She has a pending green card application, which Sakeik said was in the \u201cfinal stages\u201d prior to her detainment. <\/p>\n Ward Sakeik gestures toward her attorney, Maria Kari, during\u00a0her press conference July 3 at the Wyndham Hotel in Irving, Texas. Sakeik graduated magna cum laude from the University of Texas at Arlington.<\/p>\n Photo by Natanael Mazariego<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWe have followed all immigration policies and have complied with every single thing, every single document, every single piece of paper,\u201d Sakeik said in a press conference Thursday following her release. <\/p>\n She recently married Taahir Shaikh, a U.S. citizen, and they traveled to the U.S. Virgin Islands for their honeymoon. Sakeik was detained by ICE at the St. Thomas airport while returning home, she said. <\/p>\n \u201cI was handcuffed for 16 hours without any water or food on the bus,\u201d she said. \u201cI was moved around like cattle.\u201d <\/p>\n The Department of Homeland Security stated Sakeik\u2019s travel over international waters as the official reason for the detainment, said Chris Godshall-Bennett, one of Sakeik\u2019s attorneys. <\/p>\n \u201cThere was no lawful authority,\u201d Godshall-Bennett said. \u201cThey did not follow any procedures that would be required, given that she was on a supervision.\u201d <\/p>\n Attorney Maria Kari looks at speakers during Ward Sakeik\u2019s press conference July 3 at the Wyndham Hotel in Irving, Texas. Kari has been awarded five honors in the past year and is the executive director of Project TAHA.<\/p>\n Photo by Natanael Mazariego<\/a><\/p>\n The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to The Shorthorn\u2019s request for comment.<\/p>\n Maria Kari, another of Sakeik\u2019s attorneys, said the first deportation attempt came on June 12, in which they tried to put Sakeik on a plane heading to \u201cthe border of Israel.\u201d After the incident, the Northern Texas U.S. District Court ruled to prevent further attempts to deport Sakeik. <\/p>\n Monday morning, ICE attempted to deport Sakeik despite having a federal court order prohibiting her removal already filed, according to a joint statement released from Ward\u2019s attorneys Wednesday. <\/p>\n The next day, when an officer told Sakeik she was being released, she didn\u2019t believe him, even when he came back with paperwork, she said. She wouldn\u2019t believe him until she was walking outside. <\/p>\n On Thursday, two days after her release, a press conference was held for Sakeik, with her legal team, leaders within the Muslim community and various stakeholders present. During it, Sakeik shared details about the living conditions while in ICE confinement. <\/p>\n Attendees listen to the speakers during Ward Sakeik\u2019s press conference July 3 at the Wyndham Hotel in Irving, Texas. Local leaders, Sakeik’s family, her legal team and others attended the event.<\/p>\n Photo by Natanael Mazariego<\/a><\/p>\n The \u201cstateless\u201d woman was held in three different locations: the Broward Transitional Center in Deerfield Beach, Florida; El Valle Detention Facility in Raymondville, Texas; and Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas. <\/p>\n Sakeik said the conditions in these facilities were \u201cterrible,\u201d with dust everywhere, bugs crawling around and unhygienic bathrooms. <\/p>\n \u201cWomen [were] getting sick left and right,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n Texas Rep. Terry Meza, D-Irving, attended the conference in support of the larger immigrant community. <\/p>\n \u201cI’m here in solidarity with the Muslim community as we work together to oppose what the current administration is doing against the Constitution and what they’re doing to the immigrant community,\u201d she said. \u201cImmigrants are what make America great.\u201d <\/p>\n A paper with drawings from women detained at ICE facilities is held up during Ward Sakeik\u2019s press conference July 3 at the Wyndham Hotel in Irving, Texas. Sakeik\u2019s family came to the U.S. in 2011 to seek asylum.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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