Rahaf al-Qunun: Saudi Teen Granted Asylum in Canada

BBC: A Saudi woman who fled her family and became stranded at Bangkok's main airport is flying to Canada after being granted asylum status.

Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun, 18, had been trying to reach Australia via Bangkok, but was initially told to return to Kuwait, where her family were waiting.

She refused to fly back and barricaded herself into her airport hotel room, attracting international attention.

She said she had renounced Islam, which is punishable by death in Saudi Arabia. » | BBC | Friday, January 11, 2019

An Ex-Muslim in Sweden - The Asylum Process

Ex-Muslim Defends Right to Asylum, Renounces Islam by Desecrating Quran (2016)

Swedish Migration Board insists on deporting me back to Egypt despite the danger to my freedom and life or the persecution I am faced with in my home country . In this video I desecrate a copy of the Quran to prove having renounced Islam.

Edward Snowden: Russia Better Than Prison

The NSA whistleblower risks offending his Kremlin hosts with less than effusive description of Russia, and says he'd like to be granted asylum in Brazil

Read the Telegraph article here | Tuesday, June 03, 2014

Isa Haider Alaali Case: Bahraini Teen Fears Torture After Losing Asylum Claim

THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY: A Bahraini teenager fears he will be tortured when he is deported to the repressive Gulf state this week after his asylum application was rejected by the British Government.

Isa Haider Alaali’s deportation comes as the Royal Family have been playing host at the Royal Windsor Horse Show to the King of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, and his son Prince Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, who faces a High Court judicial review over whether he has immunity from prosecution for alleged torture.

Activists staged protests over the weekend at an equestrian event as Prince Andrew – long criticised for his cozy relationship with the Gulf state – entertained Bahraini royals at Windsor on Friday.

Home Office documents obtained by The Independent show the 19-year-old is due to be flown back to Bahrain on Thursday morning. Mr Alaali, who was sentenced to five years in prison in absentia by a Bahraini court in March on charges of illegal gathering and rioting, is unable to appeal the decision. » | Alex Delmar-Morgan | Sunday, May 18, 2014

UK Slammed for Offering Syrian Refugees Charity, Not Asylum

The United Nations is urging EU members to take in Syrian refugees, who fled the warzone but are now struggling to survive in neighbouring countries. Several European nations have answered the call, and are granting asylum to Syrians. But one of the largest member states is being criticised for shutting its doors, as Tesa Arcilla reports.

Atheist Afghan Man Granted Asylum in UK to Protect Him from ‘Religious’ Persecution

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: An Afghan asylum seeker who become an atheist has been granted leave to remain in Britain because he would face ‘religious’ persecution for abandoning Islam

A young Afghan man who became an atheist after coming to Britain has been granted asylum on the grounds that the threat to his life for having no faith would amount to “religious” persecution.

In what is thought to be the first case of its kind in the UK, the Home Office accepted that sending the man back to his country of birth could put him in danger specifically because of his lack of religious beliefs.

The man, who is not being named for safety reasons, was born a Muslim but abandoned his faith after coming to the UK as a teenager around five years ago.

Apostasy – or abandoning the faith – can be punished with the death penalty under Afghan law.

Central to his case to the Home Office was the example of Abdul Rahman an Afghan man who was put on trial and faced death in 2006 for converting to Christianity. » | John Bingham, Religious Affairs Editor | Monday, January 13, 2014

EU Rules That Gay Africans Are Entitled to Asylum

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A gay refugee from an African country where people are jailed for being a homosexual does qualify for asylum, the EU rules

The fear of imprisonment for homosexuality in African countries is grounds for asylum in the European Union, Europe's highest court has ruled.

According to the European Court of Justice, a gay refugee from a country where people are jailed for being homosexual does qualify as a persecuted group eligible for asylum.

The court's ruling concerned three homosexual men from Sierra Leone, Uganda and Senegal who had sought asylum in Holland, but is binding for all EU countries, including Britain.

"Homosexual acts are a criminal offence in those three countries and may lead to serious punishment, from heavy fines to life imprisonment in certain cases," the ECJ ruled.

"A term of imprisonment which accompanies a legislative provision which punishes homosexual acts may constitute an act of persecution per se, provided that it is actually applied."

The EU judges also ruled that asylum seekers should not be expected to conceal their homosexuality to avoid persecution in their home country. » | Bruno Waterfield, Brussels | Thursday, November 07, 2013

Germany 'Should Offer Edward Snowden Asylum after NSA Revelations'

THE GUARDIAN: Writing in Der Spiegel, more than 50 high-profile Germans add to increasing calls for Berlin to welcome NSA whistleblower

An increasing number of public figures are calling for Edward Snowden to be offered asylum in Germany, with more than 50 asking Berlin to step up it support of the US whistleblower in the new edition of Der Spiegel magazine[.]

Heiner Geissler, the former general secretary of Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, says in the appeal: "Snowden has done the western world a great service. It is now up to us to help him."

The writer and public intellectual Hans Magnus Enzensberger argues in his contribution that "the American dream is turning into a nightmare" and suggests that Norway would be best placed to offer Snowden refuge, given its track record of offering political asylum to Leon Trotsky in 1935. He bemoans the fact that in Britain, "which has become a US colony", Snowden is regarded as a traitor.

Other public figures on the list include the actor Daniel Brühl, the novelist Daniel Kehlmann, the entrepreneur Dirk Rossmann, the feminist activist Alice Schwarzer and the German football league president, Reinhard Rauball.

The weekly news magazine also publishes a "manifesto for truth", written by Snowden, in which the former NSA employee warns of the danger of spy agencies setting the political agenda. » | Philip Oltermann in Berlin | Sunday, November 03, 2013

SPIEGEL ONLINE: NSA-Affäre: US-Politiker wollen Snowden keine Gnade gewähren: "Wer die Wahrheit ausspricht, begeht kein Verbrechen", sagt Edward Snowden. Doch das Weiße Haus und der US-Geheimdienstausschuss teilen diese Meinung offensichtlich nicht - und sprechen sich gegen eine Begnadigung des ehemaligen Geheimdienstmitarbeiters aus. » | sun/AP/AFP | Sonntag, 03. November 2013

'Snowden Likely to Apply for Refugee Status in Russia, US Legally Powerless'

Snowden arrived at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport on June 23rd and has since been stuck in a legal limbo, which sparked a diplomatic standoff between a number of countries. Today NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden has been granted temporary asylum in Russia and is allowed to enter the country's territory. London-based legal expert Alexander Mercuris joins RT studio to discuss it in more detail.

'Snowden, Manning, Assange Victims of Morally Bankrupt System'

NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden has been granted temporary asylum in Russia and is allowed to enter the country's territory. Investigative journalist Tony Gosling joins RT studio to discuss this.

Snow Storm: US Slams Russia for Granting Temporary Asylum to Snowden

Russia's granting of temporary asylum to Edward Snowden has infuriated Washington. The White House hinted September's summit between President Obama and Vladimir Putin may now be cancelled. That's as some Republican senators called for a major rethink of relations between the two countries. RT's Gayane Chichakyan gauges the US response.

Edward Snowden Asylum Case Is a Gift for Vladimir Putin

THE GUARDIAN: Decision to grant whistleblower asylum is a humiliating rebuff that exposes the impotence of 21st-century US power

For the past four years the Obama administration has tried hard to "reset" relations with Russia. The idea wasn't a bad one. A more co-operative Kremlin might help the White House with its pressing international problems – the war in Syria, the US military draw-down in Afghanistan, Iran's nuclear programme.

On Thursday, however, bilateral relations appeared anything but reset as Edward Snowden – dressed in his trademark grey shirt and carrying a dark backpack – strolled out of Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport. He had been holed up there for five and a half weeks, ever since he slipped out of Hong Kong. Now he was free.

Vladimir Putin's decision to grant Snowden asylum – and make no mistake, Putin called this one – is a humiliating, wounding rebuff to the US. In theory Snowden has been allowed to stay for one year. In reality he is learning Russian and ploughing his way through Doystoyevsky. Snowden's stay in Russia could be indefinite. » | Luke Harding | Thursday, August 01, 2013

NSA Spy Leaks: Snowden Thanks Russia for Asylum

BBC: US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has thanked Russia for granting him temporary asylum, allowing him to leave the Moscow airport where he has been holed up since June.

In a statement, Mr Snowden also accused the US government of showing "no respect" for international law.

The US has charged Mr Snowden with leaking details of its electronic surveillance programmes.

Washington has expressed its "extreme disappointment" at Russia's decision.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said they were considering whether a meeting between US President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in September should go ahead.

The latest developments came amid fresh revelations from the cache of documents leaked by Mr Snowden.

Documents seen by the UK's Guardian newspaper appear to show the US government paid at least £100m ($150m) to the UK's GCHQ spy agency to secure access to and influence over Britain's intelligence gathering programmes. » | Thursday, August 01, 2013

Edward Snowden 'in a Safe Location in Russia,' Says Lawyer

BBC: US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has left Moscow airport, after being granted asylum in Russia, his lawyer has confirmed.

Anatoly Kucherena said Mr Snowden was in a safe location.

"As he is one of the most wanted people on Earth, he will be making sure his place of residence is absolutely safe," he added. (+ video) » | Thursday, August 01, 2013

Report: NSA Leaker Receives Asylum in Russia

Greg Palkot reports from London, England

US Officials Fume Over Russia Granting Asylum To Snowden

FOX NEWS: The White House and U.S. lawmakers fumed Thursday after NSA leaker Edward Snowden apparently was allowed to leave the Moscow airport and enter Russian territory on temporary refugee status.

"If these reports are accurate, Americans in Washington should consider this a game changer in our relationship with Russia," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said in a statement, calling Russia's decision "provocative" and "a sign of Vladimir Putin's clear lack of respect for President Obama." Graham called for the U.S. government to meet the decision with a "firm response," which he did not describe.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called it a "slap in the face of all Americans."

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez, D-N.J., also said that Snowden "belongs in a United States courtroom, not a free man deserving of asylum in Russia." He called the development a "setback to U.S.-Russia relations." » | FoxNews.com | Thursday, August 01, 2013

NSA Leaker Snowden Plans to Settle in Russia, Find Work

NSA leaker Edward Snowden plans to settle in Russia and is ready to begin a court battle if the country's migration service denies his asylum plea, Anatoly Kucherena, a Russian lawyer who assists the whistleblower, told RT.

Lawyer: Snowden Has No Plans to Leave Russia, Might Seek Citizenship

The man who exposed America's global surveillance network, Edward Snowden may be looking to settle in Russia - at least for the mid-term. The whistle blower has been stuck at a Moscow airport for three weeks now - because he lacks the papers to leave. Live to RT's Andrew Farmer and we are joined by RT contributor Afshin Rattansi.

Related »

Edward Snowden 'Considers Seeking Russian Citizenship'

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Edward Snowden, the US intelligence whistleblower, could leave the transit zone of a Moscow airport within a week and has not ruled out seeking Russian citizenship, according to a lawyer helping him.

Anatoly Kucherena said in the Russian capital that Mr Snowden, a former computer technician for the CIA and the US National Security Agency, had applied for temporary asylum in Russia and would receive a document allowing formal entry into the country within seven days once his case was accepted for review.

Mr Snowden, 30, has been living in the transit zone of Sheremetyevo airport since flying in on June 23 from Hong Kong, where he released details of US surveillance programmes for monitoring US citizens' phone and internet activity.

The US wants to extradite him on espionage charges but Vladimir Putin, Russia's president, has refused to hand him over.

Speaking to journalists, Mr Kucherena said he expected Mr Snowden's asylum request to be successful. "There shouldn't be a problem because those grounds which he has indicated, why he has applied to us, are convincing enough. And America shouldn't regard our humanitarian act as an unfriendly one." The lawyer added that the American leaker did not plan to go anywhere else soon and "does not exclude the possibility of requesting Russian citizenship". » | Tom Parfitt, Moscow | Wednesday, July 17, 2013