Ali Sajad Faqirzada, an Afghan refugee and Bard College student, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Tuesday. (Courtesy of Rev. Marcella Gillis) An Afghan refugee and Bard College student was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on Tuesday on Long Island following an interview related to his pending asylum case. The arrest has sparked outrage and calls for his release from local faith leaders, elected officials, and members of the Bard community. Ali Sajad Faqirzada, 31, who resettled with his family in Ulster County more than three years ago, was detained by ICE after completing and passing a “credible fear interview” at the New York Asylum Office in Bethpage, according to Anwen Hughes, an attorney at Human Rights First, an organization that is representing him. The interview, Hughes explained, is typically used to determine whether an asylum seeker has a “significant possibility” of facing persecution or torture if returned to their home country. Passing it grants an individual the right to apply for asylum before an immigration judge, she said. After the interview concluded, according to Hughes, Faqirzada and his attorneys were instructed to wait at the office. Several hours later, ICE officers arrived and arrested him in front of his legal team. “What exactly is the point of this?” Hughes said. Most of Faqirzada’s family members have already been granted asylum, and he holds valid work authorization. “We have here an entire close-knit family of people who’ve all been granted protection by the United States government based on the same set of facts that underlie [Faqirzada’s] case. And he’s been engaged in a whole process aiming toward the same result… He’s detained because he actually showed up for this interview.” Faqirzada, a student in the Bard Baccalaureate program intended for older students who are seeking undergraduate degrees, had his asylum application pending with the asylum office for over two years when the Department of Homeland Security abruptly placed him in expedited removal proceedings, Hughes said. He is being held at Delaney Hall Detention Facility in Newark, N.J., according to ICE’s online detainee locator. Attorneys at Human Rights First have filed a habeas corpus petition in New Jersey challenging the legality of his detention, which is currently pending. His volunteer legal team has also filed a formal release request with ICE in New Jersey, supported by what Hughes described as “a really extraordinary manifestation of support from members of the community [in the Hudson Valley]” that includes an extensive collection of letters from friends, neighbors, and local organizations attesting to his character. Faqirzada and his family fled Afghanistan in 2022, first arriving in California before resettling in the Hudson Valley with support from the local organizations New Paltz for Refugees, the Afghan Circle of the Hudson Valley, and Christ the King Episcopal Church in Stone Ridge. “We wanted to be of service to them in any way that we could,” said the Reverend Marcella Gillis, rector of Christ the King. The church offered the family use of its new commercial kitchen, where they began preparing traditional Afghan meals for takeout events once a month. “[It’s been] this perfect kind of synergy,” she said. “People come from all over the Hudson Valley to support these dinners. They’ve become a galvanizing community event…and a reliable source of income for this really wonderful family.” Faqirzada works as a security guard at Kingston Hospital. He has been on track to graduate with Bard’s Class of 2028. Faqirzada has been a beloved member of the Bard College community, according to Jennifer Strodl, director of communications at Bard. “Across the campus, Mr. Faqirzada is known for his kind spirit, hard work, and dedication to learning,” Strodl told The Daily Catch. “He frequently dedicates his time and efforts to support other students. He is well-liked and respected by faculty, staff, and students alike and is actively engaged in our College community. In other words, he is a Bard student that we are all—unequivocally and certainly—proud to have here.” In a letter to students and staff on Thursday, Bard President Leon Botstein said the college is in contact with Faqirzada’s family and working with community leaders to support them. Bard has also sent a letter to the federal government advocating for his release, Strodl said. “We know this news will be distressing to members of our community,” Botstein wrote in the letter. “Since its founding, Bard has remained committed… to the link between education and democracy. Central to strengthening that link is the extension of access to higher education to all.” The Episcopal Diocese of New York and Bard College will co-host a “Vigil of Hope and Community Gathering” on Monday, Oct. 20, at 5 p.m. in Bard’s Meditation Garden for the community to gather in solidarity and support of Faqirzada and his family, community leaders said. “Faith leaders and people of moral conscience will gather to offer prayers of hope, stand together in solidarity, and call for justice and compassion in the face of unjust detention practices,” organizers wrote. Faqirzada’s sister, Saida Faqirzada, said the family has been devastated by the arrest. “We were just following the laws and rules,” she said. “We already have past traumas. We already lived in a country for 20 years of attacks, fights, everything.” State Senator Patricia A. Fahy (D-46) also condemned Faqirzada’s arrest. “The repeated use of authoritarian tactics to target refugees and asylum seekers who are playing by the rules undermines public safety and the rule of law,” she said in a statement posted to Facebook after Faqirzada’s arrest. “We cannot allow this flagrant disregard for due process to be normalized.” A GoFundMe campaign to support the family’s living expenses is expected to launch in the coming days. Hughes said the arrest illustrates the “inefficiency and unpredictability” of the current U.S. immigration system. “Clearly, the logical and humane thing to do here would be to release him so that he can prepare his case in a normal way, have his hearing, get the relief that he needs, and join the rest of his family as lawfully established residents of this country,” Hughes said.