NEW YORK: The woman was widowed when her husband died in the terrorists' attack on the World Trade Centre, whose twin towers once would have been seen from the windows of the meeting room where she sits with her attorney.

But this Sept 11 widow is an illegal immigrant -- one of about 25 identified as having lost a family member in the disaster -- and she could face deportation at any time.

So could her 17-year-old son, and she begs him to carry his father's death certificate in case someone asks him why he is in the US.

''I can't get a driver's licence. I can't go to apply for a job. I can't work. I can't study. I can't fly. I can't do anything,'' the 38-year-old woman from Ecuador said this past week. She spoke on condition that her name not be used, for fear she might be deported.

A New York City group is urging Congress to pass legislation that would grant permanent residence status to the illegal immigrants who lost family members on Sept 11.

Bill Fugazy Jr., vice-chair of the National Ethnic Coalition of Organisations, said the bill should be pulled out of the immigration package and given a vote on its own merits.

''It's an easy thing for Congress to do,'' he said. ''Give them green cards so they have status here, so they can buy the homes that they would want to, and so they are not in the shadows of society.''

Eleven illegal immigrant victims were identified under the federal Sept 11 Victim Compensation Fund, which gave financial support to survivors of the attack and paid an average of $2.1 million (euro1.64 million) to the families.—AP