A 34-year-old Afghan man was yesterday spending his 17th day on hunger strike at the Mosney, Co Meath, centre for asylum seekers, in protest at official delays in dealing with his case.
Abdullah Hayy Nasseri has been in Ireland since 2004. He claims to have been jailed and tortured while in Afghanistan. More than year ago he was refused asylum here and applied for humanitarian leave to appeal, but complains of having had no contact from any relevant officials in the 12 months since.
He went on hunger and thirst strike on June 25th last but came off his thirst strike after six days. He continued the hunger strike and resumed his thirst strike last Monday.
He has said he was captured in 1992 by forces of the Northern Alliance, jailed and subjected to electric shock torture. He was detained for 10 months before being freed, after which he was a farmer in Afghanistan.
He arrived in Ireland in November 2004. It is believed he may have used the services of human traffickers to get to this State. He believes the danger to his life should he be returned to Afghanistan is compounded by his conversion to Christianity.