US denies visa to Iraqi nun, scheduled to testify about Islamic State persecution
May 01, 2015
A Catholic nun from Iraq has been denied permission to enter the US, where she hoped to testify before Congressional committees about the plight of Christians by the Islamic State.
Sister Diana Momeka was informed by the US consulate that her application for a visa had been denied. The reason for the denial was a suggestion that she might plan to stay beyond the term of her visa.
Sister Momeka had requested permission for a one-week visit, during which she had already arranged several appearances before Congressional committees, executive-branch officials, and non-government organizations in Washington. Her application for a visa had been accompanied by a letter from the Babel College in Erbil, Kurdistan, stating that she is under contract to teach there in the coming academic year.
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Posted by: barbara.sears1878 -
May. 02, 2015 12:25 PM ET USA
I find this denial sad. There is a clear reason for the visit. And proof of her plans to go back to Iraq. Do we (the US) just want to bury our heads in the sand instead of giving the Nun her say.
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Posted by: unum -
May. 02, 2015 10:11 AM ET USA
Sister Diana should have enrolled at Georgetown! No problem with the State Dept. on overstayed student visas!
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Posted by: james-w-anderson8230 -
May. 01, 2015 6:40 PM ET USA
We let thousands of criminals enter our Southern border every day but the government is concerned that a Catholic nun might overstay her one week visa. It is hard to believe that our federal bureaucracy is this incompetent. However, it is very easy to believe that it is that anti-Catholic.
