![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://uknews.evprotec.com/home-office-waging-psychological-war-on-child-asylum-seekers-with-destructive-delays/&media=https://uknews.evprotec.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/1_JS2113369775.jpg&description=Bombshell new research found many under-16s are forced to wait for years in limbo, constantly fearful of being detained and deported, as their asylum application is decided The Home Office has been accused of waging a "psychological war" on child asylum seekers as a bombshell report found failures are having a "devastating and destructive" impact. Research found many under-16s are forced to wait for years in limbo, constantly fearful of being detained and deported, as their asylum application is decided. A report by the University of Liverpool found this puts them at dangerous risk of depression, self-harm and suicide, and said the Government is acting unlawfully. One youngster, Azad, 22, who sought sanctuary in the UK after leaving Iran, told researchers: "Believe me… [the Home Office is] launching a psychological war on asylum seekers and people like myself. They want us to go mad and lose our brains, or at the end to decide to leave this country." And Besa, who came to the UK as an unaccompanied 15-year-old, said: "The uncertainty was killing me, something inside me died and I was tired of everything that I was facing. I went through suicidal thoughts, and this is how I ended up in a hospital. "I'm still dealing with the delays, and I am still struggling with my mental health, and day by day I feel like life is being drained out of me but I hope that at the end, if and when that positive decision comes, it won't be too late for me." Academics have called for action from the Home Office after finding unaccompanied children face a fivefold increase in waiting times. Asylum seeker Abli - not his real name - came to the UK aged 16, and waited five years for a decision. He said: "The scars that I have been left to deal with have been rooted deep within me. I thought I am strong... but at the moment I feel weaker than ever." The report, named Lives on Hold: Our Stories Told, based on interviews with nearly 70 young people and dozens of legal and social care professiona){kind=link}
Bombshell new research found many under-16s are forced to wait for years in limbo, constantly fearful of being detained and deported, as their asylum application is decided
The Home Office has been accused of waging a “psychological war” on child asylum seekers as a bombshell report found failures are having a “devastating and destructive” impact.
Research found many under-16s are forced to wait for years in limbo, constantly fearful of being detained and deported, as their asylum application is decided. A report by the University of Liverpool found this puts them at dangerous risk of depression, self-harm and suicide, and said the Government is acting unlawfully.
One youngster, Azad, 22, who sought sanctuary in the UK after leaving Iran, told researchers: “Believe me⦠[the Home Office is] launching a psychological war on asylum seekers and people like myself. They want us to go mad and lose our brains, or at the end to decide to leave this country.”
And Besa, who came to the UK as an unaccompanied 15-year-old, said: “The uncertainty was killing me, something inside me died and I was tired of everything that I was facing. I went through suicidal thoughts, and this is how I ended up in a hospital.