Pregnant California woman kicked in the belly by Taliban and hiding in Afghanistan is rescued

An American citizen who was hiding from the Taliban and stranded in Afghanistan has been rescued. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) confirmed that the pregnant woman, who is only known as "Nasria," is finally coming home to Southern California.

Nasria is a 25-year-old pregnant woman who was stranded in Kabul after the Taliban conquered Afghanistan. She made "multiple attempts" to access the Kabul airport, but was forcibly turned away, including one occasion where "she was kicked in the stomach" by the Taliban.

Nasria followed directions from the State Department on where and how to enter the Hamid Karzai International Airport. However, when she waved her American passport at Taliban militants, which was the signal the Biden administration promised would allow U.S. citizens to pass through Taliban checkpoints, she was allegedly denied entry.

"Our troops were literally at the gate just waiting for us to continue walking and they had blocked us," Nasria said in a Voice of America interview earlier this month. "There was a time that like, I went past them and started walking as fast as I can, and they started shooting right by my leg and told me to come back."

"It was so hard to just get on a flight," she said. "There was (sic) a couple days where we had to sleep on streets. People were literally stepping over people. That's how bad it was."

She continued, "There's been days, you know, where I think to myself, 'Am I going to make it home? Am I going to end up living here? Am I going to end up dying here?"

"She was beaten by the Taliban and kicked in the belly and has been in hiding," Issa said.

Nasria "sheltered in place, hiding her identity" in Kabul, and depended on friends "to bring her food and keep her secret."

Nasria was trapped in Kabul after all U.S. forces were withdrawn from Afghanistan on Aug. 30, despite President Joe Biden's promise to evacuate every American citizen before the withdrawal deadline.

On Friday, Issa announced that his office had facilitated Nasria's release.

"Weeks of work and countless hours of coordination paid off," Issa said in a press release. "Nasria is finally coming home."

Nasria traveled to Afghanistan in June to visit family and marry her now-husband. The father of her child is still in Afghanistan.

Nasria's friends contacted Issa after the Taliban captured Kabul.

"Issa's office has helped rescue more than 30 members of his district from Afghanistan since the Taliban overran the Afghan National Army and retook control of the country this summer, including six El Cajon-area families and other Americans and Special Immigrant Visa holders," KFMB-TV reported.

The Republican congressman said, "We continue to work around the clock to ensure hundreds of American citizens stranded in Afghanistan are able to escape. Nothing ends until our community is once again reunited with loved ones."