Experts on countries of origin by country

Professor of International Studies at the University of Leeds with extensive knowledge of the human rights situation and asylum matters relating to political persecution and trafficking. Particular experience and expertise in relation to Vietnamese refugees (political activists, victims of trafficking and persons persecuted for religious activities, Chinese asylum seekers (adherents of persecuted religious groups, political activists and victims of trafficking), and applicants from Pakistan (applicants facing threats in relation to family honour,  issues relating to the blasphemy laws, sexual orientation, applicants facing threats from terrorists and due to their political activities such as members of the UKPNP). I am acknowledged as a leading expert on the Korean peninsula (North Korea and South Korea).  I also have considerable expertise in matters relating to asylum seekers from Iraq and Iran in relation to family honour, political activism and religious persecution. Among numerous publications, reference can be made to the book Security, Culture and Human Rights in South Asia and the Middle East, Global Research Publications 2019, a guide for country experts on the regions.

Historian, specialised in the history, politics and cultures of Iran and the Kurds.

Dr. Christian is a psychoanalytical anthropologist of violent ethnic & cultural conflict in Eurasia, South Asia, Middle East, Central and South America, West Africa, North Africa and the Horn of Africa with experience working in military, diplomatic, and humanitarian interventions in intra-state violent conflicts. 

C. Christine Fair is a Professor in the Security Studies Program within Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. She previously served as a senior political scientist with the RAND Corporation, a political officer with the United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan in Kabul, and a senior research associate at the United States Institute of Peace.  Her most recent book is In Their Own Words: Understanding Lashkar-e-Tayyaba (Hurst/Oxford University Press, 2018/2019).  She has authored, co-authored and co-edited several books, including Fighting to the End: The Pakistan Army’s Way of War (Oxford University Press); Pakistan’s Enduring Challenges (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2015), Policing Insurgencies: Cops as Counterinsurgents (Oxford University Press, 2014); Political Islam and Governance in Bangladesh (Routledge, 2010); Treading on Hallowed Ground: Counterinsurgency Operations in Sacred Spaces (Oxford University Press, 2008); The Madrassah Challenge: Militancy and Religious Education in Pakistan (USIP, 2008), and The Cuisines of the Axis of Evil and Other Irritating States (Globe Pequot, 2008), among others.  

She is a member of Women in International Security, International Studies… Read more

Dr. Shaul Gabbay completed a BA at Bar Ilan University and an MA at Tel-Aviv University. In 1991 he received a Presidential Fellowship from the U.S. to continue his studies. In 1995 he completed the PhD program at Columbia University in New York and received an invitation from the University of Chicago for a Post Doctoral program. In 1998 Dr. Gabbay returned to Israel to join the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. Professor Gabbay joined the University of Denver as the Director of the Institute for the Study of Israel in the Middle East at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies in 2001- 2010.  He continued his research at DU as a Senior Scholar until 2015 when he was appointed Director of the Global Research Institute.

His areas of expertise include Middle East cultures and societal norms,   Middle East conflicts, and human rights issues existing in Muslim societies.  He is regularly cited and acts as a commentator in national and international media such as the Associated Press, CBS, NBC, FOX and MSNBC.

The expert is lecturer in Kurdish and Gender Studies at the University of Exeter and has extensive experience in providing country expert reports, nationality assessment, and language analysis.

Independent researcher. Country expert reports, nationality assessment, language analysis, Gender-based violence, Ethnic and religious minorities in the Middle East, and Document authentication.

Dr. Antonio Giustozzi is a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). He took his PhD at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). He is the author of several articles and papers on Afghanistan, as well as of seven books, War, politics and society in Afghanistan, 1978-1992 (Georgetown University Press), Koran, Kalashnikov and laptop: the Neo-Taliban insurgency, 2002-7 (Columbia University Press), Empires of mud: war and warlords in Afghanistan (Columbia University Press), Policing Afghanistan (with M. Ishaqzada, Columbia University Press, 2013), The army of Afghanistan (Hurst, 2016), the Islamic State in Khorasan (Hurst, 2018 and II ed 2022) and Taliban at war (OUP USA, 2019 and II ed. 2022). He also authored a volume on the role of coercion and violence in state-building, The Art of Coercion (Columbia University Press, 2011), one on advisory missions (Missionaries of modernity, Hurst, 2016), one on Jihadism in Pakistan (IB Tauris, 2023) and edited a volume on the Taliban, Decoding the New Taliban (Columbia University Press, 2009), featuring contributions by specialists from different backgrounds. He contributes regularly to the media and to periodical publications. In the past he worked among else as a consultant for the EUSR… Read more

The Expert is a Lecturer in Comparative Politics and International Relations of the Middle East. 

Iranian Lawyer and PhD in Middle East international politics and law (Durham Univ) - with vast experience in producing expert reports on Iranian Law and the Judicial System; also available to comment on the authentication of legal and other official documents.

Roya Kashefi is a recognised Iran country expert who provides independent analysis and reports to international bodies, NGOs, and courts. Consulted by UN Special Rapporteurs and similar organisations, leveraging her skills in research, documentation, and advocacy, she has conducted extensive investigations into human rights violations in Iran. Her comprehensive reports and policy briefings have informed the EU Parliament’s subcommittee on Human Rights and EU Parliament’s delegation for relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. She actively raises awareness by presenting findings at conferences and fostering collaboration with human rights defenders through impactful advocacy campaigns.

Dr. Sana Yaseen Khudhur is an author and lecturer at the Department of Education/ Arden University.

She completed her BA in English Language and Literature at Salahaddin University/Erbil in 2011 and was awarded a scholarship to pursue MA degree in Practice of Teaching and Learning English Language. In 2014, she was awarded another scholarship to pursue a PhD in Intercultural Linguistics.

Registered as a full member of NRPSI (National Register of Public Service Interpreters)

Registered as a fellow member of CIOL (Chartered Institute of English Language Linguists)

Published a number of academic articles and books in the field of English language learning and teaching, and the experience of ESOL, EFL and ELL by Kurdish learners

Produced a number of articles on language assessment, ethnicity, country background and information, tribal and political issues in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Extensive experience in expert reports on all the countries listed, and also in particular, Kurds in country of origin and diaspora

Intercultural and psychoanalytic psychotherapist, specialising in issues relevant to various Muslim countries, incl vendettas, honour killing, domestic violence, PTSD, Rape Trauma Syndrome, assault in detention and traumas of migration and exile.

Iranian lawyer with substantial work experience with clients, courts, police, etc in Iran, as well as international organizations. Expert in Iranian legal system and Islamic law. Available also for authentication of Iranian documents. 

Dr. Imranali Panjwani is the Head of Diverse Legal Consulting, UK (www.diverselegal.com) and a Lecturer in Law at Anglia Ruskin University in Chelmsford, Essex. He has the unique combination of being a lawyer and academic having lived and worked in the UK, Middle East and Australia. His country expert reports draw upon primary country and theological sources with stringent analysis of evidence, law and language. He resides in the UK.

Dr. Rahimi’s research and publication interests have covered diverse aspects of culture, health and subjectivity ranging from collective self-esteem and perception of racism to schizophrenia and culture, political subjectivity, radicalization, clinical trials, behavioral economics, and artificial intelligence.

Former practising solicitor in Iran with expertise of the Iranian legal and court system and Iranian documents. Fluent in Farsi.

The Expert does authenticate, Iranian Birth certificate, National ID card, ID card, Driving licence, Military service card, insurance book

Doubted Iranian nationality by Home office (they have asked 100 easy questions about Iran, the city he lived, food price, petrol price, money, rent, houses, address, school, mosque, bridge, street, river, mountain, park, taxi fare, taxi colour, football team, Emam of mosque, cemetery,  cars made in Iran….,

Percentage of genuine or fake documents The Expert reported

From 2013 to 2022, (they received 238 cases) more than 62% of case or documents I reported were negative or fake. Less than 38% were genuine.

From 2015 to 2022, they receive 46 ID cards or birth certificates, 38 fake, just 8 genuine, 83% fake, 17% genuine.

From 2013 to 2020, they intertwined 10 cases (their nationality was doubted by Home office), in two cases, The Expert confirm their nationality as Iranian, and in 10 cases, they refuse them.

In two case they insisted they are Iranian, and The Expert has sent a lawyer (my colleague in Iran) to their village to investigate about them, and they… Read more

The Expert is a Barrister-at-Law of England and Wales. The Expert is a practicing Advocate of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. He holds the position of Head of Chambers at "Justice for All', with nearly a decade's experience in legal practice. The expert regularly moves before the Supreme Court of Bangladesh for various matters including Writ (Judicial Review), Criminal and Civil Appeal and Revision, Bail Petition, Intellectual Property, Company Matter, Inheritance, Public Interest Litigation, Muslim Personal Law,  Succession Law,  Hindu Law, etc.

Parallel to his legal pursuits, the expert is the Legal Affairs and Political Editor of The Daily Campus and columnist. Accumulatively, he possesses over 18 years of sustained experience as a Journalist in Bangladesh, having written extensively on a broad range of issues, including human rights, the criminal justice system, politics, education, health, mental health, and international laws.

The Expert is an academic specialist in the politics and international relations of South Asia, & the Middle East with almost two decades of experience studying the region. The Expert has conducted research, advisory, and consultancy work in Bangladesh on the formal and informal justice systems, freedom of speech and… Read more

China expert with a passion for driving change through international project coordination, communication, and journalism. Thrived in roles spanning environmental advocacy, poverty reduction, and news editing, harnessing expertise from esteemed organizations like UNDP, Greenpeace, and Xinhua News Agency. Adept at public engagement, campaign support, and impactful content creation, consistently resonating with diverse global audiences. Known for fostering cross-cultural collaboration and delivering compelling messaging that sparks action and drives meaningful impact.