“Tahir Imin, a founding member of online news site the Uighur Times, was one of the activists who helped lobby the State Department to help Yusuf.
Imin fled to the US in 2017 after the Chinese authorities threatened to extradite him to China from Israel.
He said he has been unable to contact his wife and eight-year-old daughter in Xinjiang since he sought asylum in the US.
“We know so many Uighurs who are in the same position as Ablikim and [are] being deported to China. Ablikim was in danger and needed to be somewhere safe. That is why we had to act,” Imin told MEE.
The activist said many countries were involved in securing Yusuf’s US visa.
“This episode has shown that the United States and its allies are the only countries who can stand up against Chinese oppression on the world stage,” Imin said.”
