US government worked against itself to let Marine adopt Afghan girl, documents obtained by AP show

Associated Press (AP)EN 17 min read 75% complete by By CLAIRE GALOFARO and JULIET LINDERMANFebruary 6, 2026 at 01:53 PM

AI Summary

long article 17 min

Newly released documents reveal a US government conflict that allowed a US Marine and his wife to adopt an Afghan girl, despite the Afghan government's efforts to reunite her with relatives. The adoption, granted by a Virginia judge in 2022, was based on the belief that the girl was an orphan with no family, but the US government knew Afghanistan was actively searching for her family. The documents, obtained by the Associated Press after a three-year legal battle, show that officials in the Trump administration had intended to reunite the girl with her relatives before the adoption was finalized. The case raised alarms at the highest levels of government, both in the US and Afghanistan, as it bypassed critical legal safeguards and Afghan laws regarding child custody. The Marine, Joshua Mast, maintains he acted in the child's best interest.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Taliban 40% Stephanie Mast 40% Donald Trump 50% The Associated Press ×260% Justice Department 60% Kathryn Wyer 70% Joshua Mast ×270% Fluvanna County Circuit Court ×270% Richard Moore ×480% Afghanistan ×490% United States ×290%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.40

Source Transparency

Source

Associated Press (AP)

Classification Confidence

90%

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis.

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