We are angry to convey the news that after the brave stopping of a charter plane before it was able to leave on 15th September, 52 Iraqi Kurdish asylum seekers (including those assaulted and injured in the earlier revolt) were forcibly removed from British immigration detention centres to Erbil International Airport, Northern Iraq, on 17/18th September. They were met by two hundred Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) troops. From a report to the International Federation of Iraqi Refugees-IFIR & Coalition to Stop Deportation to Iraq-CSDIRAQ by one of those removed, at least one was separated off from the other asylum seekers and escorted away by the troops. Iraq is safe, our warmongering politicians lie, yet again. We lost this one, but resistance has worked before, and will no doubt continue.
52 Iraqi Kurdish Asylum were forcibly deported from Britain to Erbil International Airport, Northern Iraq on the 18 September.
Fazzel the leader of the Campsfield hunger strikers contacted the Federation from Northern Iraq to tell the story of his forcible deportation. Fazzel was removed with approximately 51 other Iraqi Kurds late last night (17 September) on the HamburgInternational plane. Fazzel is still very badly injured from the failed 15 September deportation two days before when during a disturbance on the plane a Home Office Guard had pushed Fazzel?s head through one of the windows on the plane. These events lead to the 15 September deportation flight being cancelled. Following this assault Fazzel had been taken back to Colnbrook and promised a doctor, but no onecame to treat his injuries prior to his deportation on the 17 September.
The Hamburg International plane landed in Erbil at 1am on the 18 September. As the asylum seekers were taken off the plane there were approximately two hundred Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) troops waiting for them. Fazzel reported thatone of the asylum seekers dressed in white clothes (Fazzel believes he had been on hunger strike at another detention centre) was separated off from the other asylum seekers and escorted away by four of the KRG troops. Fazzel still does not know where he has been taken or if he has been released yet.
International Federation of Iraqi Refugees-IFIR, Coalition to Stop Deportation to Iraq-CSDIRAQ
For more information please contact:
Dashty Jamal 078 5603 2991, Karen Johnson 078 04891082 Samera Ahmad 078 2842 4164 email: sarahp107@hotmail.com,Karen.Johnson@btinternet.com, d.jamal@ntlworld.com
POBOX 1575,ILFORD IG1 3BZ, LONDON, UK
Tel:0044 7856032991
www.csdiraq.com
www.federationifir.com