The Great Read: Where Was Nurul Amin Shah Alam?
A refugee with little sight and no English, he had been jailed for a year, intercepted by federal agents and delivered to a merciless Buffalo winter.
The New York Times
The Great Read
May 12, 2026, 2:01 p.m. Eastern time

On weekdays and Sundays, we recommend one piece of exceptional writing from The Times — a narrative or essay that takes you someplace you might not expect to go.

Hands holding a “missing person” poster.

Where Was Nurul Amin Shah Alam?

A refugee with little sight and no English, he had been jailed for a year, intercepted by federal agents and delivered to a merciless Buffalo winter.

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