An expectant mum says she has gone from "heaven to hell" after her husband's visa was denied meaning he could miss the birth of their first child.
Jamie and Ahmed Buzidi met each other 12 years ago while studying at Belfast Metropolitan College and after a few years apart, reconnected during the Covid pandemic. Spending everyday talking to each other online, their romance quickly blossomed with the couple getting married in Istanbul in June 2021.
A few months later, the pair had even more to celebrate as Jamie found out she had a baby on the way at the start of this year after moving to Libya to live with Ahmed. However shortly after this their world would be turned upside down.
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In May, Jamie's mum rang to say she had been diagnosed with cancer and Ahmed encouraged her to go home to be with her during the treatment and he would follow once a visa was confirmed. Having been through the process a number of times before he felt there would be no issue.
Prior to returning home, Jamie had a scan to check the health of their baby and received the worrying news that their first child would be born with a defect. Further tests once she returned home to Belfast showed their baby has gastroschisis and that their intestines had formed on the outside of its body and would require surgery and treatment once born.
The news caused anxiety for the couple but they knew they could get through it all if they were together. But as the months went on, Ahmed had still not heard anything back about his visa and the pair began reaching out to local representatives for help in getting it processed.
Four weeks before their child was due to be born, Ahmed was told that his visa had been rejected because the Home Office believed they had not lived together long enough during the covid pandemic when they were "stuck in different countries".
Speaking to Belfast Live, Jamie said: "After our wonderful wedding and then getting the news that I was pregnant with the baby we dreamed of I felt like we were in heaven, only to be in hell a few months later.
"With the worries regarding my mum's cancer treatment, our child's condition and Ahmed's visa it has been the hardest months of our lives.
"To then be told that his visa has been rejected just weeks before I give birth has been completely heartbreaking. All I want is to be with my husband so we can take care of our child together. The reasons the Home Office has given for the refusal do not seem fair and they are tearing apart our family during the toughest time of our lives.
"I am determined though to have this overturned and to be reunited with Ahmed once again and I will not stop fighting until he is here with me and our baby."
The Home Office has said that it does not comment on individual visa cases.
A Home Office spokesperson said: "In order to meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules applicants should ensure they provide all the necessary evidence in support of their applications".
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