ICC Note: The Archbishop of Canterbury is interceding on behalf of a Syriac Christian man who fled Mosul when it was first invaded by ISIS in 2014. The man now faces deportation from the United Kingdom after having multiple appeals for his rejected asylum claim. Justin Welby, the archbishop, has spent time meeting with the Mosul man and gathering evidence to help his case for asylum in the country.

01/24/2017 UK (Mo4ch News): The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has made a bid to keep an Iraqi Christian who fled Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) from being deported back to his home country.

Welby has written a letter to the Home Office in support of the refugee ahead of a fresh appeal to overturn the rejection of his asylum claim.

Two appeals have already been turned down and the Iraqi is now seeking permission for a third appeal. He was told earlier this month to report to a Home Office center every fortnight or risk being held in a detention center.

Welby met the asylum seeker, a Syriac Orthodox Christian who was deacon of his church in Mosul, while he was volunteering at Lambeth Palace.

In a letter dated September 28, Welby said he had “been impressed with [the man’s] positive attitude, integrity, and the quality of his work,” adding, “[he] is clearly someone who wishes to contribute to society… He is someone who would be a great asset to the United Kingdom. I strongly endorse [his] desire to seek asylum in the UK,” as cited in the Guardian.

The archbishop’s interfaith adviser, Mark Poulson, sent a second letter last week, in which he “unequivocally endorsed” an appeal of the rejection of the Iraqi Christian’s asylum request.

Poulson wrote, “we have been extremely impressed with his… willingness to spend time helping others whilst his own situation is so distressing.”

The refugee and his immediate family fled their Mosul home in August of 2014 after IS jihadis seized the city.

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