Source: Scotland on Sunday
Glasgow, Scotland -- A gay asylum seeker who fears torture and death if he is deported to Syria, where homosexuality is illegal, is waiting to hear if this week's appeal for leave to stay in Scotland will be granted.

At a tribunal that met to consider his case Tuesday, Yakob gave testimony that one supporter called deeply emotional.

"Jojo gave evidence and he was very upset," said Rob McDowall of the advocacy group Equal Rights Now. "It was really emotional hearing him tell his story. The Home Office really pushed him and tried to con him into changing his story. He was put on the defensive all the time, but he did very well and stayed strong."

Jojo Jako Yakob, 19, fled Syria two years ago after being arrested after he was caught distributing anti-government leaflets.

Once prison guards discovered that he was not only a Christian member of the repressed Kurdish minority in the Arab state but was also a homosexual, he was beaten so badly that he slipped into a coma, the newspaper Scotland on Sunday reports.

Yet after fleeing to Scotland two years ago, his application seeking asylum was initially rejected and the Home Office which ordered his return to Syria.

Dr Rebwah Fatah, a Middle East expert, also gave evidence at Tuesday's hearing in Glagow. He referred to a report concerning gay and human rights in Syria. He explained to the hearing that homosexuality is a "taboo" in the Middle East, which has a deep Islamic culture.

"Gay people in Syria face punishment by law, by the family and by the society," said Fatah. "Mistreatment of Mr Yakob is plausible if he were returned to Syria.

Full article: Gay Syrian waits for asylum appeal verdict | Scotland on Sunday