The restrictions placed on Maher Tarabishi will haunt him long after his 30-year-old son, Wael, is laid to rest.For decades, Maher, 62, had cared for his son as he struggled with a rare genetic condition called Pompe disease, which causes muscle weakness and severe respiratory problems.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listThe disease required round-the-clock care and dozens of surgeries, which Maher carefully attended to.But Maher was abruptly separated from Wael last year, as part of United States President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.Last Friday, when Wael drew his final breath, Maher was not there to hold him. When Wael’s funeral is held on Thursday at a mosque in Arlington, Texas, Maher will once again be absent, unable to say his final goodbyes.That is because Maher remains in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and in each instance, his requests for a temporary release have been denied.“Wael’s last wish was, ‘Let me at least just see my father. Let me at least hold his hand,’” Shahd Arnaout, Wael’s sister-in-law, told Al Jazeera. Maher Tarabishi poses for a family photo with his son Wael [Credit: @freemahertarabishi on Instagram]Maher, a Jordanian national, had lived in the US for years under a so-called “supervision order” from a court. It allowed him to remain in the country to care for his son, despite a 2006 order calling for his removal.Bu …
