UK Home Office rejects Sudan asylum-seeker based on old data
Man judged as not ‘facing real risk of harm’ based on information before civil war
More than 600,000 people have fled country since April
Updated 10 July 2023
Arab News
LONDON: A Sudanese asylum-seeker attempting to flee his war-torn country to the UK was rejected by the Home Office based on outdated information, Metro newspaper reported.
Authorities had used information from 2021, before the outbreak of the civil war, to judge the safety level of the country and make an asylum decision.
There was “not a real risk” to the Sudanese national from “indiscriminate violence in situations of international or internal armed conflict,” a rejection letter said. He would also not “face a real risk of suffering serious harm.”
However, more than 600,000 people have fled Sudan in the wake of violence that broke out in April, which has left hundreds of people dead.
Metro reported that it is unclear how many other Sudanese asylum-seekers have been rejected by the UK based on the outdated information.
A Home Office spokesperson said it would communicate with the Sudanese national to “review his asylum application,” adding: “All asylum applications are considered on their individual merits in line with the asylum rules and the evidence presented.”
Hannah Marwood, Care4Calais legal access manager, said: “With over 5,000 Sudanese asylum-seekers stuck in the government’s legacy backlog, they should be getting on with processing claims and offering them protection given the ongoing conflict in Sudan.”
Morocco's cereals harvest expected to double after wet winter
Updated 13 sec ago
Reuters
RABAT: Moroccan grains traders and millers expect Morocco to double its cereals harvest this season after abundant winter rains, with limited impact from floods in the northwestern plains of the North African country, which is a major grains importer. Industry leaders plan to add domestic wheat to strategic reserves this year "without compromising imports", said Moulay Abdelkader Alaoui, head of the federation of industrial millers FNM, who expects a domestic harvest of 6 million metric tons. "We expect a good cereals harvest this year of 8 to 9 million tons, including around 5 million tons of soft wheat," Omar Yacoubi, head of Morocco's wheat trading federation FNCL, told Reuters. The previous harvest was 4.4 million tons, including 2.4 million tons of soft wheat. Morocco traditionally cancels its wheat import subsidy and reinstates customs duties to protect the local harvest. But this year importers, millers and traders have asked the government to extend the subsidy window to June 1, instead of May 1, to compensate for costs incurred due to bad weather. Rainfall this winter was 34% above the 30-year average and triple the previous year's levels, while dam filling rates improved to 70% from about 25%, agriculture ministry data shows, while the total grain-planted area rose to 3.7 million hectares, from 2.6 million the year before. Flooding in the fertile northwestern plains, which destroyed 110,000 hectares, had a "localised" impact, Yacoubi said, with wheat losses to be offset by higher yields in larger plains. DELAYED SHIPPING Large swells and storms since mid-December have disrupted port operations at Casablanca and Jorf Lasfar, which handle 80% of Morocco's wheat imports. Shipping delays have weighed heavily on importers, even as international wheat prices remain below the subsidy eligibility threshold, Yacoubi said, adding that as of this week, 70 ships carrying 1 million tons of wheat were queued outside ports, leading to low stock levels. Moroccan importers are paying about $20,000 per day for ships waiting offshore, pushing them to request an extension of the government subsidy programme. Traditionally, only half of Morocco's harvest reaches industrial mills because small farmers retain wheat for their own use, but Alaoui said this year's plentiful rainfall should improve crop quality and encourage more collection. French exporters expect to supply about two-thirds of Morocco's soft wheat import needs, or 3.5 million tons. From June 2025 to January 2026, Morocco imported 7 million tons of grains, up 12% year-on-year, including 3.2 million tons of soft wheat. During the same period, France topped Morocco's soft wheat suppliers with 2.26 million tons, followed by Argentina with 233,144 tons, Russia with 227,070 tons, Germany with 120,084 tons and the U.S. with 94,688 tons.
