ECtHR - Laraba v. Denmark, application no. 26781/19

The applicant is a dual Danish and Algerian national who has been deprived of his Danish nationality and deported from Denmark with a permanent re-entry ban for joining the Islamic State. The applicant claimed a violation of Article 8 ECHR, but the Court found that the Danish decision was not arbitrary. 

Case status
Decided
Case number
Application no. 26781/19
Citation
European Court of Human Rights, Laraba v. Denmark (application no. 26781/19), 22 March 2022
Date of decision
State
Court / UN Treaty Body
European Court of Human Rights
Language(s) the decision is available in
English
Applicant's country of birth
Denmark
Applicant's country of residence
Denmark
Relevant Legislative Provisions

Section 8b of the Act on Danish Nationality

ECHR Article 8

Facts

The applicant was arrested in 2016 based on an Interpol list of individuals linked to ISIS. He was convicted in 2017 for joining the Islamic State from 2013 to 2014. The Danish courts sentenced him to five years in prison, deprived him of his nationality and ordered his expulsion with a permanent re-entry ban.

Decision & Reasoning

The Court found that the measures taken by the Danish authorities were not arbitrary. The applicant was given an opportunity to challenge the decision taken at two levels of jurisdiction and the deprivation of his nationality was considered proportionate given the severity of the terrorist crimes he had committed. The Danish courts had assessed the consequences of the measures, considering the applicant's ties with Denmark and Algeria. The Court agreed that an expulsion order and lifelong re-entry ban was necessary to protect the public from the threat of terrorism and concluded the Danish courts were not in violation of Article 8.

Outcome

The application was declared inadmissible.

Caselaw cited

ECtHR, K2 v. the United Kingdom

ECtHR, Mansour Said Abdul Salam Mubarak v. Denmark

ECtHR, Ghoumid and Others v. France

ECtHR, Usmanov v. Russia

ECtHR, Adam Johansen v. Denmark

ECtHR, Ramadan v. Malta

ECtHR, Üner v. the Netherlands

ECtHR, Maslov v. Austria

ECtHR, Levakovic v. Denmark

ECtHR, Balogun v. the United Kingdom

ECtHR, Mutlag v. Germany

ECtHR, Ndidi v. the United Kingdom