Utah 'feels like home' for state's first Afghan refugee
From front left, Afghan refugee Shazia Kakaie, her mother, Hawa Sultani, brother Arif Muradi, back right and her brother-in-law Wali Kakaie converses among themselves while posing for a portrait at their house in North Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021, infront of a framed picture of slain U.S. Marines Staff Sgt. Taylor Hoover from Utah, one of the 13 American service members killed in Kabul airport bombing attack. The Marine staff sergeant lifted Shazia and her family up out of a wet sewage gutter next to the airport gate in Kabul and made their way into the U.S.
fghan refugee Shazia Kakaie, right, enjoy a talk with her mother Hawa Sultani at their house in North Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021. Following the Taliban takeover in Kabul, Shazia and her family was separated from her husband and later they were reunited in Utah on Oct. 30.
The exterior of Shazia Kakaie’s house is pictured in North Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021. After months of waiting and moving around the family has finally settled in the American soil.
Utah’s first Afghan refugee Azim Kakaie, right and his wife Shazia Kakaie holding hands comes up the gallery staircase after an MLS soccer match between Real Salt Lake and Portland on Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2021 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, UT. Azim, who worked as an air traffic controller at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, fled Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover and arrived in Utah on Sept. 1. He was detached from his wife and his family for over a month and finally met on Oct 30.
Afghan refugee Shazia Kakaie pauses at her house in North Salt Lake on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021, while describing her experience leaving Kabul, Afghanistan. Following the Taliban takeover, Shazia was separated from her husband, Azim. They were reunited in Utah on Oct. 30.
Afghan refugee Shazia Kakaie, back, prepares lunch as her brother-in-law, Wali Kakaie, left, mother Hawa Sultani and brother Arif Muradi eat at their house in in North Salt Lake on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021. On the day of the attack, the family was nearing 32 hours on foot, with almost no food. “Just water, if we find it,” Kakaie said. “If we don’t find, we don’t drink water.”
Afghan refugee Shazia Kakaie reacts as her mother, Hawa Sultani, mentions her pregnancy at their house in North Salt Lake on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021. Kakaie hid her pregnancy from her family for a long time. It was not until arriving in America when she revealed her pregnancy.
The Kakaie family takes a selfie during the half-time of an MLS soccer match between Real Salt Lake and Portland on Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2021 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, UT.
Utah’s first Afghan refugee Azim Kakaie, center, his brother Wali Kakaie, right, and his wife Shazia Kakaie react to a missed goal opportunity during an MLS soccer match between Real Salt Lake and Portland on Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2021 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, UT.
Azim Kakaie reacts during his weekly workout session at his home’s gym facility in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021. Kakaie, who worked as an air traffic controller at the Kabul Airport, fled Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover and arrived in Utah on Sept. 1.
Azim Kakaie checks on the rice as he prepares for lunch at his home in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021. Kakaie, who worked as an air traffic controller at the Kabul Airport, fled Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover and arrived in Utah on Sept. 1.
Azim Kakaie is silhouetted against the window of the living room where he is currently residing until his family arrives, Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021 in Salt Lake City. Kakaie, who worked as an air traffic controller at the Kabul Airport, fled Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover and arrived in Utah on Sept. 1.
From left, Azim Kakaie’s brother-in-law Arif Muradi, mother-in-law, Hawa Sultani, wife Shazia Kakaie and his brother Wali Kakaie along with other spectators stand during the U.S National anthem ahead of an MLS soccer match between Real Salt Lake and Portland on Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2021 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, UT. Although, Azim’s pregnant wife and in law family is now settled in Utah, his own family is still trapped in Kabul with no chance of entering the U.S soon.