ISLAMABAD, Dec 17: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday restrained the government from deporting a Syrian student, Yoman Ismail, to his native country.

IHC Chief Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rehman passed these orders while hearing a case regarding the detention of a Syrian student.

Yoman has been in the custody of security agencies for the last two years and defence ministry had told the IHC last month that the student was being kept at an internment centre in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa (KP).

Fearing Ismail’s deportation to Syria because of his overstay, his friend Bilal Al-Sameer had moved the court against the move and alleged detention.

The student went missing in 2010 and in July 2012 the Arab Desk of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the court that he was picked up by the security agencies for overstaying in the country.

According to Jahangir Wains, the petitioner’s counsel, Yoman Ismail was a student of LLM (Shariah and Law) at the International Islamic University, Islamabad.

He adopted before the court that the arrest of the student had not only wasted his two precious years but now by deporting him, the foreign ministry would deny him his right to education.

The chief justice has issued stay orders till December 19 after the respondent, the federal government, sought some time to submit its reply.—A Reporter