From Iceland — Asylum Seekers To File Charges Against Police

Asylum Seekers To File Charges Against Police

Published October 31, 2013

Three asylum seekers plan to file charges against the police in the wake of a raid in Kópavogur.
Last month, dozens of police raided a building in Kópavogur, using battering rams and drug dogs. The residents of the building, most of them asylum seekers from Albania, were arrested, many of them still in their pyjamas, and placed in solitary confinement. Damage to property, as well as personal injuries to the asylum seekers, were said to be extensive. Despite repeated questioning from reporters, the police have refused to disclose if anyone was charged with a crime, or why the raid even took place.
DV now reports that a lawyer representing three of the residents says they are preparing a case against the police. Many of the residents were reportedly traumatised by the incident.
It is also reported that the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is investigating the incident.
The raid is connected to the recent deportation of 17 Albanian asylum seekers who were flown back to their homeland earlier this week. The deportees were only given 48 hours notice that they would be kicked out of the country, and among them was a five-month-old child and a pregnant woman.

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