Amsterdam
A Somali-born member of Parliament lost her Dutch citizenship this week because of false statements on her Dutch asylum application 14 years ago. Ayaan Hirsi Ali gained fame in 2002 when she collaborated with director Theo van Gogh on a film about the oppression of women in Muslim societies. Van Gogh was later stabbed to death by a Muslim militant. Hirsi Ali long ago admitted that she gave a false name and age on her asylum application, claiming she was fleeing an arranged marriage in Somalia. But last week, a Dutch news program reported that she already had refugee status in Kenya at the time, and Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk, a member of Hirsi Ali’s right-wing party, revoked her citizenship. Hirsi Ali said she plans to move to the U.S. to work for a conservative think tank.
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