Army 1st Lt. Mohsin A. Naqvi

Remember Our Heroes

Army 1st Lt. Mohsin A. Naqvi, 26, of Newburgh, N.Y.

1st Lt. Naqvi was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 11th Infantry, Fort Benning, Ga.; died Sept. 17, 2008 in Gerdia Seria, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device. Also killed was Sgt. Joshua W. Harris, Capt. Bruce E. Hays and Staff Sgt. Jason A. Vazquez.

Family recalls soldier’s patriotism, loyalty
By Greg Marano
Poughkeepsie Journal

WAPPINGERS FALLS — Nazar Naqvi’s son was not a Muslim soldier. He was a soldier who was a Muslim.

“First he was American,” he said of his son, Mohsin. “Then he was Muslim.”

The regular Friday prayer service at the Mid-Hudson Islamic Association on All Angels Hill Road paid special tribute Friday to Mohsin Naqvi, 26, of Newburgh, a second lieutenant with the U.S. Army.

He was among a group of five soldiers killed while on patrol in Afghanistan Wednesday. He leaves behind a 20-year-old wife, Raazia.

After Friday’s regular service, mosque members comforted Mohsin’s brother and father, and an imam led an informal prayer service specifically for the soldier.

Mohsin Naqvi had served a tour in Iraq before being deployed to Afghanistan, and family members said his Muslim faith was a constant source of taunting.

“He was being picked on any time they wanted,” his father said. “He still wanted to be in the Army.”

But Nazar Naqvi said he never questioned the allegiance of his son, who emigrated from Pakistan with the family when he was 8 and became a U.S. citizen at 16.

“When he came to this country, he took an oath to be loyal to the United States,” Nazar Naqvi said.

Hassan Naqvi, Mohsin’s younger brother, knelt at the Friday afternoon prayer service, Mohsin’s dog tag hanging from a chain around his neck, and wiped away a tear.

He called his brother “the most patriotic person I know.”

Mohsin Naqvi joined the Army reserves days after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Once in Afghanistan, he would converse with prisoners of war in his native language, Urdu, but his common ground with the captured Taliban fighters ended there. The version of Islam they were preaching didn’t resemble his own, he told his family.

“As far as he was concerned, he wasn’t fighting against Muslims,” Hassan Naqvi said.

“Before he left for Af-ghanistan, I asked him if he was scared,” Hassan Naqvi said. “He said he wasn’t, because that was where he was needed most.”

After the service, Mohsin Naqvi’s uncle, Anwar Naqvi, said his nephew died defending against acts of terror and a violent interpretation of Islam the vast majority of Muslims denounce.

“I am proud that my nephew, he basically ...” Anwar Naqvi said, pausing to regain his composure and fight his tears to speak, “he laid down his life in the line of his duty. He was doing what he was supposed to do.”

Funeral arrangements have not been made, as the family doesn’t know when Mohsin’s body will be returned, but the funeral service is expected to take place in the Albany area.

Fallen soldier memorialized in upstate New York
By Richard Richtmyer
The Associated Press

ALBANY, N.Y. — Muslim prayers joined American military honors in upstate New York as family, friends and fellow soldiers remembered Mohsin Naqvi, an Army officer killed in Afghanistan.

About 350 people gathered Monday for a Shia funeral service before his burial with full military honors in a nearby cemetery. Naqvi, who was born in Pakistan and came to the U.S. with his family as a child, was one of four soldiers killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol last week.

An Army honor guard from Fort Drum’s 10th Mountain Division carried Naqvi’s flag-draped coffin into a prayer hall on the outskirts of Albany, where mourners remembered the 26-year-old, who had been married in the same mosque.

“He was married here a day before he was deployed,” said Shakil Virjee, a member of the mosque’s board of trustees and a friend of the family.

Naqvi was born in Pakistan and came to America when he was 8 years old. His family settled in the Hudson Valley city of Newburgh, where he grew up and went to school. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen when he was 16.

His wife, Raazia, and her family are from the Albany area, and the Naqvis frequently traveled from Newburgh to worship at the mosque, Virjee said.

Naqvi joined the Army Reserve a few days after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and went on to serve in Iraq. He later re-enlisted for active duty and become a first lieutenant.

During part of his military service, Naqvi was assigned to the Headquarters and Headquarters Company at Fort Benning in Georgia, where he worked under the command of Capt. Carl Purgerson.

“Lt. Naqvi was my (executive officer) for about six months,” Purgerson said as he stood outside the mosque Monday. “He made it a joy to come to work, very dedicated and a true patriot to the core.”

New York Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Eric Hunt also knew Naqvi, though they never served together. They were next door neighbors in Newburgh for years.

“I’ve known him since he was a teenager,” Hunt said, fighting back tears as he spoke.

“Whenever he was home we’d get together and talk about Army stuff. We had that in common,” Hunt said. “He was always cracking jokes. We went to his brother Hassan’s high school graduation party last year, and he was the life of the party.”

Some who knew Naqvi said he hoped his Muslim faith and heritage could help bridge cultural divides, but often struggled against people who questioned his patriotism.

“We were really proud of him joining the forces,” said Aziz Ahsan, a Hudson Valley lawyer who survived the attack on the World Trade Center and is active in the area’s Muslim community.

“He’s the most patriotic person I’ve known, and he sacrificed his life for all Americans, not just Muslim Americans.”

Army 1st Lt. Mohsin A. Naqvi remembered
The Associated Press

Those who knew Mohsin A. Naqvi said he hoped his Muslim faith and heritage could help bridge cultural divides, but he often struggled against people who questioned his patriotism.

“We were really proud of him joining the forces,” said Aziz Ahsan, who is active in the Muslim community. “He’s the most patriotic person I’ve known, and he sacrificed his life for all Americans, not just Muslim Americans.”

Naqvi, 26, of Newburgh, N.Y., was killed Sept. 17 by a roadside bomb in Gerdia Seria. He was assigned to Fort Benning.

He fought in the invasion of Iraq in 2003, and re-enlisted for a tour of Afghanistan. The 2006 graduate of the State University at Geneseo, deployed a day after his wedding.

“He was always cracking jokes,” said New York Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Eric Hunt.

Naqvi, who was born in Pakistan and came to the U.S. with his family as a child, became a naturalized U.S. citizen when he was 16.

“He made it a joy to come to work, very dedicated and a true patriot to the core,” said Capt. Carl Purgerson, his boss at Fort Benning.

He is survived by his wife, Raazia.

Army 1st Lt. Mohsin A. Naqvi was killed in action on 9/17/08.