Aug 27, 2007Quickie Link: Italy Ready to Grant Asylum to Pegah Emambakhsh
By vanrozenheim
(Italy) - Italian politicians said Rome could grant asylum to an Iranian lesbian who faces deportation from Britain and a possible death sentence back home. Meanwhile, gay rights proponents and left-wing politicians rallied for her cause in a protest Monday outside the British embassy here. Pegah Emambakhsh, 40, who fled to Britain from Iran in 2005 after her partner was arrested and tortured, is due to be expelled this week after her bid for residency was rejected, according to a British advocacy group. The main Italian gay rights group, Arcigay, led about 100 people in a protest Monday evening outside the British embassy. Some left-wing politicians from parties in Premier Romano Prodi's center-left coalition joined the demonstration.
