Docket: IMM-5145-13
Citation:
2014 FC 1204
Ottawa, Ontario, December 12, 2014
PRESENT: The
Honourable Mr. Justice Zinn
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BETWEEN:
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GHAZI HAMMOUD HOSSIN
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Applicant
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and
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THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION
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Respondent
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JUDGMENT AND REASONS
[1]
Mr. Hossin asks the Court to set aside the
decision of the Refugee Protection Division finding that he was not a
Convention refugee or a person in need of protection. After a full review of
the Record, I am unable to agree with him that the decision under review was
unreasonable. Accordingly, this application will be dismissed.
[2]
Mr. Hossin, is a citizen of Iraq and a Sunni
Muslim. In 2007, he was forced to flee to Ghetherifa because of sectarian
conflict. Upon arriving there he says that he discovered that the town was
under the control of Al Qaeda which was encouraging people to fight against
American forces and the Shia population. Mr. Hossin says that he began to
speak out against this in private but that Al Qaeda found out what he was doing
and saying and they threatened to kill him. He sent his family away and
testified as to a number on incidents that happened to him and family members,
including the deaths of his brother, his brother’s son and a cousin.
[3]
The Member found that the applicant had failed
to prove that he was being pursued by Al Qaeda or that those whose actions he
complained of were members of Al Qaeda. He observed that they might very well
be an armed Sunni group or merely Al Qaeda supporters.
[4]
The crux of the decision, and that which counsel
focused upon in oral submissions, is contained in the following two paragraphs.
The UNHCR Guidelines go on to state, when
discussing Al Qaeda:
As a result of diminished
popular support, opposition from the Sahwa forces increased USF-I/ISF
offensives as well as high-profile arrests of leaders, the group [Al Qaeda] was
weakened and no longer holds territorial control of vast areas of central Iraq.
The panel finds that, even if the group, who
allegedly targeted the claimant, were members of Al Qaeda or loosely connected
to Al Qaeda, it would appear they no longer have the capacity or reach
suggested by the claimant.
[5]
Counsel submits that this is an unreasonable
finding and that the record contains documentary evidence that expressly states
the contrary to the Member’s finding.
[6]
The Court has carefully examined the documents
referenced by the applicant. The UNHCR Guidelines upon which the Board
relies is dated May 31, 2012. All of the documents relied on by the applicant pre-date
it and, in any event, many are not truly contradictory to the finding of the
Member.
[7]
In the Court’s view, the Member relied on the
most current information concerning a country that is currently in a state of
turmoil. It is noted that many parts of Iraq are now under the control of
ISIS. Having relied upon what was then current information, and given the
forward looking nature of the exercise, the Board’s decision as to the capacity
of Al Qaeda in the area from which the applicant hails, is reasonable.
Accordingly, this application cannot succeed.
[8]
No question was proposed to be certified.
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