Court rules against Home Office in asylum seeker kidnapping case

Department had claimed that being kidnapped for ransom was not exploitation of trafficking victims in case of Syrian man abducted in Libya

The court of appeal has rejected claims by the Home Office that being kidnapped for ransom is not exploitation of trafficking victims.

The ruling means that many people who have been kidnapped for ransom, whom officials have previously excluded from being victims of exploitation under trafficking rules, will now have to have these claims considered. They may be eligible for the support and recovery package trafficking victims are entitled to.

Being kidnapped for ransom is a common hazard for asylum seekers passing through Libya on their journey to Europe. Many are fleeing conflict in countries such as Sudan and Eritrea as well as some Middle Eastern countries.