Terrorism and Exclusion from Refugee Status in the UK: Asylum Seekers Suspected of Serious Criminality

Exclusion from refugee status for the suspected commission of serious crimes is a topic fraught with political and legal controversy. This is an area which sees the intersection of refugee law with international criminal and humanitarian law and, increasingly, measures taken in the fight against terrorism. In Terrorism and Exclusion from Refugee Status in the UK, Sarah Singer examines whether and how ‘terrorism’ has featured in the UK’s interpretation and application of the Refugee Convention’s ‘exclusion clause’. A number of sources are drawn on including questionnaires and interviews conducted with immigration judges, the Home Office’s exclusion unit and legal practitioners. She therefore provides an unprecedented and thorough analysis of the UK’s approach to asylum seekers suspected of serious criminality.