Two Ahwazi Refugees deported by the Syrians to Iran

The Syrian Human Rights Committee (SHRC) has learnt form Ahwazi and Human Rights sources that the Syrian Authorities arrested five Ahwazi’s (Ali Bu Athar, Kamal Nuwasiri, Salah al-Deen Suwari, Afnan Azizi and Ahmed Asadi) on 5/3/07, and handed two of them over to the Iranian Authorities on the same day (Ali Bu Athar- 24 years, and Kamal Nuwasiri-27 years). Both of them face the prospect of torture and the death penalty in Iran, especially considering that Mr. Ali Bu Athar had been previously sentenced to death by the Iranians.


Ali Bu Athar, 24years, had been previously sentenced to death by the Iranian Revolutionary Court. He was arrested by the Syrian Authorities from his home in al-Mezzeh 86 neighbourhood in Damascus.


Kamal Nuwasiri of 27 years, who has been legally living in Syria for eight months and is a registered refugee, was planning to travel to the United States after it was appointed as a country for refugees to be allowed to enter. He was also arrested from his home in al-Mazzeh 86 neighbourhood.


SHRC reminds the Syrian Authorities of its international duty and role in acknowledging and protecting the rights of refugees, especially considering that Syria signed the International Declaration for Human Rights. SHRC also requests the Syrian Authorities to allow the Ahwazi refugees to settle in or leave Syria without the threat of being arrested or deported to the Iranian Authorities.


SHRC also calls upon the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to use her influence to stop the Syrian Authorities from mistreating refugees and deporting them to oppressive authorities which will torture and possibly kill them, as happened last year when Ahwazi refugees were handed to the Iranian Authorities by the Syrian’s, and subsequently killed.


Syrian Human Rights Committee