AUAD v. BULGARIA JUDGMENT
5
paragraph 44 below), the head of the State Agency for National Security
made an order for the applicant’s release. The applicant was set free the
following day, 20 May 2011. He was placed under the obligation to report
daily to his local police station. He submits that he is currently without any
identification documents, means of support, or the possibility to work.
C. Judicial review of the applicant’s expulsion
19. On 4 December 2009 the applicant made an application for judicial
review of the expulsion order. He also challenged his detention. He argued
that the order was unlawful and that he had not engaged in any illegal
activities while in Bulgaria.
20. On 23 March 2010 the applicant, having acquainted himself with an
excerpt of the proposal for his expulsion and other documents in the file,
asked the court to order the authorities to specify – if need be, subject to
restrictions resulting from the use of classified information – what was the
basis for their belief that he was being sought by the Lebanese authorities
“in connection with the killing of members of Palestinian political parties”,
as noted in the proposal. He also asked the court to order the authorities to
specify whether they had used special means of surveillance to gather
information about him; if yes, to order them to produce a copy of the
requisite warrant and other documents.
21. The Supreme Administrative Court heard the case on 27 April 2010.
22. In a memorial filed on that date the applicant argued that the data on
which the authorities had relied to order his expulsion were incorrect,
vague, unverified, internally inconsistent and unreliable. It was not true that
he was a member of Usbat al-Ansar; quite the opposite, he was being sought
by terrorist organisations, and had for that reason fled Lebanon. His relative
referred to as a terrorist in the proposal was in fact an official of a school
administered by the United Nations. There were no concrete elements in
support of the assertion that he was being sought by the Lebanese
authorities. The Bulgarian authorities had not tried to verify that through
official channels, as was possible under the treaty between Bulgaria and
Lebanon for mutual cooperation in criminal matters. The lack of concrete
information on those issues prevented him from presenting evidence to
rebut the allegations against him. He also pointed out that the State Agency
for National Security had not objected to his receiving protection in
Bulgaria during the asylum proceedings (see paragraph 11 above). Lastly,
he drew attention to the fact that he had been granted humanitarian status on
the basis of a risk to his life, and argued that his expulsion would breach the
principle of “non-refoulement” and Article 3 of the Convention.
23. In a final judgment of 22 June 2010 (реш. № 8-10 от 22 юни
2010 г. по адм. д. № С-4/2010 г., ВАС, VІІ о.), the Supreme
Administrative Court upheld the expulsion order in the following terms: