Christian asylum seeker remains in limbo as Swedish government refuse to reconsider deportation order

A Christian asylum seeker in Sweden remains in a legal limbo as the government refuses to reconsider an order to deport her back to her native Iran, where she is said to face the risk of imprisonment, rape and even death because of her faith.

Aideen Strandsson, who converted from Islam to Christianity in Iran after dreaming about Jesus, came to Sweden in 2014 on a work visa and adopted a Swedish last name. However, the Swedish government has rejected her bid for asylum twice despite the danger she faces back in her home country.

After CBN News broke Strandsson's story, the government of Hungary offered her asylum and people from around the world contacted the Swedish government asking it to reconsider the decision to deport her.

The Swedish migration board, however, refused to rescind the deportation order and told CBN News, "the fact that your readers write to us will not change the Migration Agency's decision, nor can we change the court's decision."

Although Strandsson remains in Sweden, she is unable to get a job and still runs the risk of deportation.

"Aideen's situation is not at all uncommon in Sweden," says Swedish attorney Gabriel Donner. "There are a fair amount of people who get stuck in between. So you have these curious cases where nothing is really dealt with and you cannot get ahead," he added.

Strandsson had previously landed a job as a technology developer for the Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson, but the government refused to give her a temporary work permit. "[T]he idea is to starve you so you tell them to send you out," said Donner.

While there have been many offers of help and asylum for Strandsson from other nations, she said that she wants to stay in Sweden because her family is there and because she said Jesus told her to not be afraid.

Donner said that it is still not clear when the government would decide to deport Strandsson as the border police's backlog is still growing.

In the event that Strandsson is deported, she would first be sent to prison in Sweden as the authorities make the arrangements to fly her back to Iran, according to Donner.

"This is real prison conditions. They're not allowed to speak on the telephone. They're not allowed to be on a computer, not allowed to get in touch with anybody, they wear prison clothes. If they have to be transferred anywhere, they're transferred in chains," Donner said.

The authorities would then contact the Islamic Republic of Iran and tell them when to expect Strandsson, even though the migration board's website states that it will never deport asylum seekers to nations where they face danger.

While the government has rejected the asylum bids of Strandsson and other Christians, it has reportedly given 150 protected identities to former Islamic State militants who have returned to Sweden so that they can find jobs.