Headline

13-year-old Boy Sues UK Parents For ‘Deportation’ To Africa Over ‘Gang Involvement’

Published

10 months ago

November 30, 2024

A 13-year-old boy has taken legal action against his parents, accusing them of “brutally” taking him overseas and enrolling him in a boarding school before abandoning him there.

The boy, whose identity is protected, contacted the British Consulate and a child welfare organization after his parents registered him at an African school before returning to the United Kingdom.

The boy’s legal team argued that his parents “physically and emotionally abandoned” him due to concerns over his potential involvement in gangs in London, an accusation the teenager denies vehemently.

At a hearing that began on Tuesday, the boy’s lawyers requested a judge order his return to the UK, where he has lived since birth.

However, the boy’s father’s lawyers argued that the decision to send him abroad was a legitimate exercise of parental responsibility.

Deirdre Fottrell KC, representing the boy, stated that his parents’ actions were driven by the belief that there was no alternative way to address the perceived risks than by removing him from the country.

She added, “The steps that this boy, not yet 14, has taken to try and remedy the awful situation he finds himself in are extreme.”

Fottrell further stated, “There is clear evidence that he is being harmed emotionally, psychologically, and possibly physically in the environment in which he has been placed,” describing the parents’ decision to leave him in such a situation as “extraordinary.”

She emphasized that the boy’s claim of not being involved in any gang was “categorical,” and the risks his parents feared—such as being stabbed or shot—were not a likely outcome should he return home.

The boy was described in court as “very polite and articulate,” with a passion for football and cooking.

According to Fottrell, he was enrolled in a school abroad without warning or consultation with him, under the pretence of caring for an ill relative. Upon arrival, his parents left him there.

Fottrell described the act as “stark and quite brutal,” citing the boy’s reports of “inadequate” food and tuition, as well as mistreatment. She also highlighted that the boy was “patently extremely unhappy” in Africa, finding the experience “humiliating” and stating that his English friends mocked him for being “deported.”

In addition, Fottrell mentioned that the boy’s mother admitted to physically chastising and abusing him while in the UK. The boy is reportedly “upset, confused, and distressed despite acknowledging his imperfections.”

Judge Mr. Justice Hayden, during the hearing, pointed out that the boy was subjected to “incredibly restrictive” measures in the UK, such as having his location monitored through his phone, which he suggested would be “pretty unbearable for most 14-year-old boys and girls.”

Rebecca Foulkes, representing the boy’s father, mentioned that social workers had reported issues in managing the boy’s behaviour before he left the UK.

They noted instances of physical aggression from the mother when trying to manage his behaviour.

Foulkes also shared that the boy had frequently been late to class, stayed out late, and had been suspected of engaging in criminal activities.

The school had concerns about his social vulnerability and had observed him with expensive clothes and phones, while his phone contained pictures of knives and friends holding knives.

Foulkes stated that from the father’s perspective, there had been a clear deterioration in the boy’s behaviour, leaning toward criminal activities.

She argued that the boy’s parents had “real concerns about where he was and who he was with.”

Foulkes further stated that, in her view, “high-quality care and education in a boundary setting” was available in Africa, where the risks the boy faced in the UK were not present. She believed that the boy’s potential would be wasted if he were to return to the UK.

The court also heard that the parents’ decision should be respected, as it was made in their son’s best interest, even if it did not align with his wishes.

The hearing before Mr. Justice Hayden is set to continue at a later date.

PUNCH

Headline

Peru Anti-government Protesters Clash With Police

Published

18 hours ago

September 21, 2025

Editor

Hundreds of anti-government protesters clashed with police in the Peruvian capital Lima on Saturday, throwing stones and sticks as officers fired tear gas on the demonstrators, AFP journalists reported.

The protest, organized by a youth collective called “Generation Z”, is part of growing social unrest in Peru against organized crime, corruption in public office, and a recent pension reform.

“Today, there is less democracy than before. It’s getting worse… because of fear, because of extortion,” said 54-year-old protester Gladys, who declined to give her last name.

Around 500 people gathered in the city center, under heavy police presence.

“Congress has no credibility, it doesn’t even have the approval of the people… It is wreaking havoc in this country,” said protester Celene Amasifuen.

The clashes broke out as demonstrators tried to approach executive and congressional buildings in Lima.

The radio station Exitosa said that its reporter and a cameraman were hit by pellets, commonly fired by law enforcement.

Police said at least three officers were wounded.

Approval ratings for President Dina Boluarte, whose term ends next year, have plummeted amid rising extortion and organized crime cases.

Several opinion polls show the government and conservative-majority Congress are seen by many as corrupt institutions.

This week, the legislature passed a law requiring young adults to join a private pension fund, despite many facing a precarious working environment.

AFP

Headline

Fresh World Trouble Looms As Netanyahu Tells Western Leaders ‘There Will Be No Palestinian State’

Published

18 hours ago

September 21, 2025

Editor

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said there would be no Palestinian state, in a message addressed to the leaders of Britain, Australia and Canada after they recognised Palestinian statehood.

“I have a clear message for those leaders who recognise a Palestinian state after the horrific massacre on October 7: you are granting a huge reward to terror,” he said.

“And I have another message for you: it will not happen. No Palestinian state will be established west of the Jordan River.”

Britain, Australia and Canada on Sunday became the first tripartite Western nations to recognise a Palestinian state.

Britain and Canada became the first G7 countries to take the step, with France and other nations expected to follow at the annual UN General Assembly, which opens Monday in New York.

“Today, to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution, the United Kingdom formally recognises the State of Palestine,” UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a message on X.

“Canada recognises the State of Palestine and offers our partnership in building the promise of a peaceful future for both the State of Palestine and the State of Israel,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney wrote on X.

This comes after decades of requests for sovereignty from the Palestinian side.

Portugal was also to recognise Palestinian statehood later Sunday, as Israel came under huge international pressure over the war in Gaza triggered almost two years ago by the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack.

Headline

Badenoch Slams UK’s Palestine Recognition Decision As ‘Absolutely Disastrous’

Published

18 hours ago

September 21, 2025

Editor

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch condemned the Prime Minister Keir Starmer-led United Kingdom’s decision to formally recognise the State of Palestine.

PUNCH Online reports that Britain, alongside Australia and Canada, on Sunday recognised a Palestinian state in a seismic shift in decades of Western foreign policy.

Britain and Canada became the first G7 countries to take the step, with France and other nations expected to follow at the annual UN General Assembly, which opens Monday in New York.

However, the decision triggered swift Israeli anger and condemnation from the opposition.

Reacting in a statement on her X on Sunday, Badenoch described the move as “absolutely disastrous.”

She argued the move rewards terrorism with no conditions, and the decision would be widely regretted.

She said, “Absolutely disastrous. We will all rue the day this decision was made. Rewarding terrorism with no conditions whatsoever put in place for Hamas.

“It leaves hostages languishing in Gaza and does nothing to stop the suffering of innocent people caught in this war.”

The Winchester opposition leader accused Labour of pandering to its “hard left” rather than fixing Britain’s pressing domestic problems.

“It is because Labour cannot fix the big problems in our society that they focus on discredited student union campaigns to appease the hard left.”

Listing examples of Labour’s failings, she said, “They cannot fix the NHS, so they push assisted suicide. – They cannot create jobs for young people, so they give them votes at 16.

“They cannot sort out immigration, but they will recognise Palestine instead. And so on. This is the same man who paid £35bn of reparations to Mauritius along with the surrender of the Chagos islands.”

Badenoch also criticised what she described as the prime minister’s lack of judgment.

“Everything we are seeing is a consequence of a Prime Minister who has no plan for the country and no judgment.

“He will spend the next four years delivering the hobbyhorses of the Labour left to stay in power and leave a HUGE mess for us to clean up.”

Earlier, Starmer announced the recognition of Palestine in a post on X, saying the move was intended to provide a two-state solution.

He said, “Today, to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution, the United Kingdom formally recognises the State of Palestine.”