Australia may take in ‘refugee’ Saudi

SETTLEMENT HOPE FOR RAHAF

AUSTRALIA has said it will assess a runaway Saudi woman for settlement after the United Nations deemed her a refugee.

The Department of Home Affairs confirmed that the UN High Commissioner for Refugees had referred 18-year-old Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun to Australia for consideration for refugee settlement.

Ms Alqunun arrived in Bangkok on a flight from Kuwait on Saturday and planned to continue to Australia, for which she held a tourist visa.

But after being detained by Thai authorities, she refused to board a flight back to Kuwait, barricading herself in a hotel room.

After publicising her case via social media, saying she feared for her safety if made to return home to her family, she was placed in the care of UNHCR workers as her bid for refugee status was considered.

It led to her referral to Australia yesterday.

“The UNHCR has referred Ms Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun to Australia for consideration for refugee resettlement,” Australia’s Home Affairs Department said.

It added that it would “consider this referral in the usual way, as it does with all UNHCR referrals”.

Indications from Canberra suggest Ms Alqunun may receive a sympathetic hearing.

Ms Alqunun’s case has again highlighted the cause of women’s rights in Saudi Arabia.