Iraq: A Sad Story Grows Sadder Still

The sad story of Alex R. Jimenez, one of the two U.S. soldiers kidnapped and feared dead after an Al Qaeda-led ambush in May in the Triangle of Death, has grown sadder still with the news that his wife may be deported.

Yaderlin Jimenez, like her husband, is a native of the Dominican Republican, but she entered the U.S. illegally prior to marrying him in 2004. She has been listed for deportation despite being married to a naturalized U.S. citizen because she did not apply for a green card.

Jimenez, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, petitioned for a green card when he was home on leave from Iraq.

Their lawyer, Matthew Kolken, says that while Yaderlin, who is 22, wouldn’t normally be eligible for a green card, her husband was seeking a hardship waiver for her.

Says Kolken:

“I can’t imagine a bigger injustice than to deport someone’s wife who is fighting and possibly dying for our country.”

The Army asked that deportation proceeding be halted because Jiminez is MIA and an immigration judge has put temporary stop to the deportation proceedings. Yaderlin is said to be living with family in Pennsylvania.

The other missing soldier is Private Byron W. Fouty, 19, of Waterford, Michigan.

Click here for more on the deportation issue, here for more on the ambush-abductions and here for more on Jimenez.