Robotics team lands in US after visa U-turn

Washington: A team of Afghan girls who were earlier denied visas to attend a Washington robotics competition landed in the United States early Saturday following an intervention by US President Donald Trump. The six-member team were greeted at Dulles International Airport by a throng of supporters, including Afghan ambassador Hamdullah Mohib and acting special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Alice G Wells, and were presented with bouquets. They are due to take part FIRST Global Challenge — a three-day international robotics competition that aims to promote science and technology among youths worldwide that begins Monday. “Our acting special rep to #Afghanistan/#Pakistan welcomes #AfghanRoboticsTeam to USA! Go girls!,” tweeted State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert. US authorities had originally refused access to schoolchildren from a number of Muslim-majority nations to participate in the science contest, decisions that followed implementation of stricter visa policies under Trump. But the US president urged a reversal following public outcry over the Afghan girls’ inability to attend the event. — AFP