WASHINGTON — Earlier than her country and her life were without warning and basically changed in 2021, Mahnaz Akbari became as soon as the trailblazing commander of the Afghan Nationwide Military’s Feminine Tactical Platoon, an all-female squad that accompanied elite U.S. Particular Operations troops as they applied dauntless mountain missions, hunted ISIS combatants and freed captives from Taliban jails.

Ms. Akbari, 37, and her soldiers did so at sizable non-public chance. One lady became as soon as shot by the neck, struggling a fractured skull. One other became as soon as killed shortly before the fall of Kabul. And after the Taliban took over the country, many members of the platoon were compelled to flit to the United States.

Now, Ms. Akbari and other members of the Feminine Tactical Platoon are embarking on one more mission: working to convince Congress that their carrier in Afghanistan has earned them the amazing-seeking to defend in The US permanently.

“Our missions were for massive targets: a Taliban commander or a Da’ish leader,” Ms. Akbari stated, the exercise of one more name for ISIS someday of a most up-to-date interview at her Silver Spring, Md., home.

On Thursday, Ms. Akbari and a crew of alternative girls folk from the Feminine Tactical Platoon met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to check out to revive stalled legislation to home their and other Afghans’ precarious immigration predicament. The soldiers are in the United States below a two-twelve months humanitarian parole that is made up our minds to expire in August. That would possibly possibly maybe maybe pause the girls folk’s work permits, forcing their contemporary employers to halt their jobs and leaving them in a apt limbo.

The meetings on Thursday ran the gamut from liberal to conservative lawmakers.

Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican who has backed hard-line immigration policies, left his come across with the girls folk sounding impressed and sympathetic.

“Gallant Afghans risked their lives to defend American soldiers protected, and now we absorb got a accountability to them,” Mr. Cruz stated after the meeting.

That sentiment became as soon as echoed by Advertising and marketing consultant Michael Waltz, a Florida Republican who splendid-looking out counseled feeble President Donald J. Trump for re-election nonetheless has been a champion of helping Afghan refugees who aided American troops someday of the a long time-long battle in Afghanistan.

“You’re all fellow soldiers; we all fought collectively,” Mr. Waltz, a feeble Green Beret, told the girls folk at a meeting hosted by Advertising and marketing consultant Seth Moulton, a Massachusetts Democrat who served in the Marines. “What’s ingrained in us and in every soldier is you by no manner leave a fellow soldier at the relief of — ever. So we’ll defend combating for other folks who were left at the relief of.”

Senator Amy Klobuchar, Democrat of Minnesota, stated she became as soon as taking the lead on a revision of the Afghan Adjustment Act, which died in the last Congress for lack of Republican wait on.

That invoice, which would absorb created a apt pathway for everlasting residency for Afghans who had risked their lives to lend a hand People someday of the battle in Afghanistan — as translators, drivers and fixers — stalled out amid Republican concerns about vetting. About 82,000 Afghans were evacuated to the United States after the fall of Kabul. Since then, most were residing in apt limbo, with out a long-timeframe authorization to dwell.

The measure, which required extra security checks, became as soon as modeled off guidelines enacted after other humanitarian crises, admire the Vietnam War. The same statutes were furthermore enacted after crises in Cuba, Nicaragua and Iraq.

It furthermore would absorb created a pathway to everlasting authorization for four explicit groups: the Afghanistan Nationwide Military Particular Operations Characterize, the Afghan Air Power, the Particular Mission Fly of Afghanistan and the Feminine Tactical Teams of Afghanistan.

Ms. Klobuchar is working on an change of the invoice with hopes of gaining ample allies on the amazing-seeking to toddle the legislation. She stated she had spoken several instances with feeble President George W. Bush about his wait on of the effort.

“Within the Senate now we absorb got rising Republican wait on,” Ms. Klobuchar stated. “They’ll’t be in limbo for this long. These girls folk are portion of tens of thousands of Afghans who stood with our country.”

Will absorb to the effort fall short, nonetheless, some proponents stated Congress would possibly possibly maybe maybe effect in suggestions a narrower invoice that would possibly possibly maybe maybe lend a hand splendid-looking out the dozens of girls folk in the special forces squad defend in the United States.

Within the course of a meeting with the girls folk, Erin Chapman, senior counsel to Ms. Klobuchar, stated the legislation already contained adjustments requested by Republican senators last Congress for “extra vetting” of the Afghans to be conducted by the Defense Department.

Mary Kolars, an Military captain who led the Cultural Improve Team in Afghanistan and worked closely with the Afghan girls folk, asked Ms. Chapman about safety concerns for the kin of the platoon, most of whom were left at the relief of in Afghanistan.

“These girls folk, their households are being centered — their siblings, mother and father,” Ms. Kolars stated.

As his meeting with the soldiers received underway on Thursday, Advertising and marketing consultant Greg Stanton, Democrat of Arizona, became as soon as making an strive one more tactic. Mr. Stanton had despatched a letter to Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of hometown security, asking him to in my thought guarantee that members of the Feminine Tactical Platoon would absorb their asylum circumstances promptly adjudicated by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Products and companies.

Finest three of almost 45 female soldiers absorb so some distance been granted asylum, Mr. Stanton stated, and he raised concerns that they were being handled in a thoroughly different contrivance thanks to their gender.

“I’m involved that this crew of fearless girls folk is receiving disparate treatment out of your department,” Mr. Stanton wrote to Mr. Mayorkas. “After all, many male Afghan soldiers, including pilots, absorb bought their asylum inner the 180-day timeframe.”

The effort to win the girls folk a pathway to everlasting residency is in many methods simply closing a loophole, their allies divulge. Contractors reminiscent of translators and fixers who worked straight for the U.S. authorities are eligible for Particular Immigrant Visas, whereas soldiers who were paid straight by the Afghan authorities need to not.

The sage of how the Feminine Tactical Platoon became as soon as created, and then evacuated from the country, goes relief higher than a decade.

About 10 years into the battle in Afghanistan, the U.S. militia sure it wished female troops to lend a hand because it patrolled rural villages in the country.

It became as soon as conception to be culturally insensitive for the male soldiers to refer to Afghan girls folk in some ingredients of the country, so Ms. Akbari and her troops would lead the conversations. They carried guns in case they encountered enemy combatants, nonetheless furthermore chocolate, in case they encountered children.

While they were essentially serving as cultural ambassadors, the work placed them in sizable chance. When one platoon member became as soon as conducting a search, the girl she became as soon as browsing pulled out a gun and opened fire, wounding her badly. Within the course of some firefights between U.S. troops and ISIS, the sky would light up with what looked admire fireworks, Ms. Akbari recalled.

“These were with out a doubt unhealthy missions with excessive-payment targets at stake,” Ms. Kolars stated. “As soon as we focus on about why they deserve our lend a hand, it’s very non-public to me, because Mahnaz would possibly possibly maybe maybe as properly be my sister. They’ve sacrificed for his or her country and for ours. The bond between our two gadgets is somewhat inseparable.”

Quite loads of the girls folk are Hazara, an ethnic minority that has faced violent persecution below Taliban rule. Living as a Hazara in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan doubles the chance posed by having female kin who worked with U.S. troops. Ms. Kolars stated most of the platoon members absorb had family killed, tortured or threatened by Talibs.

After the fall of Kabul, the Taliban confiscated the girls folk’s kinds so the crew would possibly possibly maybe maybe note down their households, Ms. Kolars stated, nonetheless the info remained in Afghan authorities files since the girls folk had been so completely vetted.

A network of largely female American soldiers rallied to lend a hand the Afghan girls folk evacuate from the country hasty.

Now, members of the female platoon get themselves working at Chick-fil-A, as baristas and in grocery stores.

“In one evening, they went from being these highly efficient, good soldiers with a divulge motive to without warning, in the Taliban’s eyes, you’re barely human,” Ms. Kolars stated.

They are scattered by the country, nonetheless many are seeking to over all over again enter the field of combat.

Ms. Akbari stated on Thursday that she became as soon as ready to beget it all over all over again. If she is granted her green card, she stated, she can be half of the U.S. Military.