Bioengineer To Be Deported From Iceland

An asylum seeker from Norway, who was stripped of citizenship in that country, will be deported from Iceland.

Mahad Abib Mahamud, who arrived in Norway in 2000 at the age of 14, was stripped of his citizenship last year because Norwegian authorities believe he lied about his actual country of origin; Mahad says he is from Somalia, while Norway contends he is from Djibouti.

Working as a bioengineer at a hospital in Ullevål, he lost his job in the wake of the ruling, and headed for Canada, but sought asylum in Iceland. RÚV now reports that his case has been rejected, and he will be deported to Norway.

Amongst the reasons for the ruling cited by the Immigration Appeals Board is the Dublin Regulation, a European law that gives signatory nations the power to deport asylum seekers back to their previous point of departure. The board also said that his case to get his Norwegian citizenship back is currently on the docket in Norwegian courts, despite previous reporting that Norway’s High Court already ruled in favour of the government’s decision.

No official date has been set for his deportation to Norway.