Hussein Ali was arrested for working without permission (in London). He had been in the UK many years and his asylum application refused.
After 50 days in detention he was forcibly returned to Kurdistan. Two days later he had shot himself.
After 50 days in detention he was forcibly returned to Kurdistan. Two days later he had shot himself.
Miriam Hollis, reporting from Iraq
Yesterday the newspapers ran the story of Hussein Ali who was arrested for working without permission (in London). He had been in the UK many years and his asylum application refused. He was working when arrested.
After 50 days in detention he was forcibly returned to Kurdistan where he was reunited with his family. Two days later he had shot himself in the cellar of the house. The funeral has taken place this week.
The family are very angry with the UK Government and they want to sue. They believe that his treatment in the UK, and the process of asylum which penalised him for not having enough evidence, has led to his death. They believe that his human rights have been breached. Photographs of him show a very saddened man.
The family want to know how he was removed in what was a very depressed state. They want to know what treatment he was given in detention, and how his state of mind was missed.
The journalists here did not know that the KRG and the UK Government ( and other European countries) have an agreement that those without status in the UK can be returned to the KRG.
Further, this is the second suicide on return from the UK this year, and the third suicide - the third was from Holland and I understand clearly had mental health problems. The other man from the UK - his name is Heman, hanged himself from a tree shortly after return.
This is also at a time when a well respected student and journalist investigating corruption in the KRG, was shot outside his home last week. The city is full of posters which are put up at night, and many are torn down by the morning, which display large photos of the journalist with the text asking why was he killed. There is a growing feeling amongst the people that this was an assassination, and they don't have any faith that those responsible will be discovered.
