UK extradites Iranian man despite human trafficking concerns

Asylum seeker came to the UK from France for the second time

The Iranian asylum seeker crossed the English Channel from France to the UK on a small boat on October 18. AFP

An Iranian asylum seeker has been deported for the second time from the UK, despite concerns he could be a victim of modern slavery.

The man returned to the UK last month after being sent back to France under the “one in, one out” scheme.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmoud confirmed his second deportation on Wednesday saying “anyone looking to return to the UK after being removed is wasting their time and money".

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“This individual was detected by biometrics and detained instantly. His case was expedited, and now he has been removed again," she added.

Maddie Harris, founder and director of Humans for Rights Network, which is supporting the asylum seeker and some of those returned to France under the scheme, said the man was under “immense distress”.

“We remain acutely concerned for the welfare of this man. His continuing detention and threat of removal is causing him immense distress, he should urgently be released and the threat of removal cancelled to avoid further acute harm,” she told The National before his removal.

She said people sent to France in recent weeks lived under the further threat of removal to countries where they had been abused.

“We also remain concerned for the welfare of those removed to France over recent weeks; many are living under the threat of onward removal to countries where they experienced abuse such as Spain and Poland, moved from place to place, with no access to information or support and certainly no access to safety.”

The man was understood to be receiving hourly welfare checks by staff at the UK immigration centre where he was held because of concerns about his mental health. He had told lawyers he was not safe, due to traffickers who know him on the other side of the English Channel.

“If I thought France was a safe place for me I would never have come to the UK,” the man told The Guardian. He has appealed for another country, such as Canada, to take him in.

“I believe the UK is a safe place for me, away from the smugglers in France. I cannot go back there because it is dangerous to me. Only my body can go back there, not me. I am a human being and my life will be finished there. I think the UK forgot about humans,” he said.

“The UK has closed the door on me and I am appealing for another safe country far from the smugglers, such as Canada, to grant me protection.”

The man described how he had fallen into the trap of human traffickers while hiding out in French forests. These coastal badlands have a reputation for danger and gang-based violence.

“The smugglers are very dangerous,” he said. “They always carry weapons and knives. I fell into the trap of a human-trafficking network in the forests of France before I crossed to the UK the first time.

“They took me like a worthless object, forced me to work, abused me, threatened me with a gun and told me I would be killed if I made the slightest protest.”

It comes as the UK is renegotiating the Sandhurst Pact, in which it paid £476 million ($620 million) to France for police surveillance and beach patrols over a three-year period. Reports in France suggest that French officials want more money, with suggestions they were "holding the deal hostage" by stalling on deportations, according to The Sun.

About 75 people have been deported back to France as part of a "one in one out" deal agreed in July between the Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron. Yet 16,000 people have arrived in the UK by small boat across the channel in that same period.

The man first came to the UK on August 6 and was deported to France on September 19. He crossed the channel again on a small boat on October 18.

Despite warnings that he was a victim of trafficking, the Home Office requested he be readmitted to France on October 21. His trafficking claim was referred to the “national referral mechanism” for consideration but was rejected on October 27.

His lawyers raised concerns about his health and vulnerable state to the Home Office, stating in documents: “We are of the view that his health is rapidly deteriorating and that he requires urgent assessment and sustained support.”

The Home Office also rejected requests from his lawyers for a time extension before removing him. He was given an appointment under immigration rule 35, to assess concerns about vulnerabilities.

But that appointment is for November 6, the day after his planned removal from the UK.

According to the documents, Home Office officials acknowledged that while asylum seekers can access public mental health care in France, “capacity and language barriers can hinder access in practice”. They added: “Adequate steps will be taken in the UK to forestall any suicide attempt.”

The growing numbers of people arriving in the UK on small boats has prompted a political backlash against successive governments, which have pledged to stop the crossings.

Up to October 22, a total of 36,886 people arrived by small boat into the UK this year, which is 70 more than the whole of last year.

The Home Office has been contacted for comment.