London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 11, 2025

UK about to deport up to 30 Kurdish asylum seekers to Iraq despite dangers

UK about to deport up to 30 Kurdish asylum seekers to Iraq despite dangers

Foreign Office warns against all travel to the country where Islamic State is still a threat
Up to 30 Kurdish asylum seekers are facing deportation to Iraq in the first Home Office flight of its kind for a decade.

Iraq is deemed to be so dangerous that the Foreign Office warns against all travel there, warning of “a high threat of kidnapping throughout the country including from both Daesh [Islamic State] and other terrorist and militia groups”.

Home Office contractors involved with Tuesday’s deportation have had to undergo special training to help them deal with the risk of dangers such as kidnap or hostage situations. This training is not required for other recent destinations of Home Office deportation charter flights, such as Jamaica and Albania. The flight is scheduled to land in Erbil in northern Iraq, where the Kurdistan regional government is in control.

Protests against the flight took place on Monday in both London and Kurdistan. Many of those due to be deported are either asylum seekers or refugees in the UK and have families and children here. Some, speaking from inside detention centres, told the Guardian they have embarked on hunger strikes.

One man facing deportation said: “The whole process is shambolic. We are human beings. I’ve been here 20 years. I’ve got A-levels. I speak six different languages. I’m not a criminal or drug dealer, I haven’t done anything. The more I think about it, the more I get upset.”

Another man, a 35-year-old asylum seeker who arrived in the UK in the back of a lorry at the age of 15, speaking from his cell in detention on Monday afternoon told the Guardian that everyone due to be put on Tuesday’s flight was in a state of panic and fear. “I swear that every single person returned to Kurdistan will be in danger,” he said.

“Some have already received threats. We are worried that we will be grabbed as soon as we arrive at the airport in Erbil. In my country some people wouldn’t think twice about shooting us in the head. There are some ruthless people there.”

Bella Sankey, director of the charity Detention Action, said: “We know of at least 11 people with British children and grandchildren who could be deported to Iraqi Kurdistan. Many escaped here decades ago from the violence and turmoil in that region.

“With the persecution of protesters, religious minorities, children and LGBT+ people continuing in Iraqi Kurdistan, Priti Patel is displaying, once again, her complete disregard for the safety and human rights of people who have rebuilt their lives in our communities.”

Karen Doyle from Movement For Justice, an organisation that has been campaigning against Tuesday’s charter flight, said: “The Home Office is planning to send traumatised torture survivors to a dangerous and unstable region in a move which shows utter disregard for human life.

“The men we have been speaking to have made their lives in the UK and have wives and children here. Many have been unable to secure legal representation while detained. This government is ignoring individual traumas of those due to fly.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “We make no apology for removing foreign criminals and those with no right to remain in the UK. This is what the public rightly expects and why we regularly operate flights to different countries.

“Individuals are only returned when the Home Office and, where applicable, the courts deem it is safe to do so. The New Plan for Immigration will fix the broken immigration system and expedite the removal of those who have no right to be here.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
×