Two teenage asylum seekers, who have been described as a credit to Scotland, are celebrating after winning their battle to escape deportation to Pakistan.
Brothers Somer Umeed Bakhsh, 16, and 14-year-old Areeb, who have ambitions to become the first Scottish astronauts, have spent most of their lives fearing they could be forced to leave Glasgow and sent home to a country where Christians are persecuted.
The Home Office decision, made on Thursday, also applies to their parents, Maqsood and Parveen, and signals the beginning of the end of a seven-and-a-half year struggle for the family.
It is the result of a high-profile Church of Scotland campaign, which led to more than 94,000 people signing two online petitions which urged the UK Government not to deport the brothers to their birth country.
The family fled to Glasgow in 2012 from Faisalabad after father Mr Umeed Bakhsh was subjected to death threats from Islamic extremists due to his Christian faith, and two of his friends were killed.
Somer Umeed Bakhsh, who got four As and a B in his exams, and aspires to be an astrophysicist, said: “We have gone through a tough time and I am really happy that we now have the freedom to stay in the country we love.
“I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders because the threat of deportation was always in the back of my mind.
“Scotland is my home, I have grown up here, all my friends are here and I feel like a Scottish boy.
“I am very thankful to everyone who has supported my family and the people who signed the petitions – we could not have got to this point without you.
“But I am disappointed that we will have to apply to the Home Office for an extension in just two and a half years.”
The family, who are now seeking new accommodation, are active members of Possilpark Parish Church in Glasgow.
Their minister, Rev Linda Pollock, led the campaign to stop the family being deported to Pakistan.
She said: “Going forward, I would say look out world, this family are going to do something wonderful.
“Don’t be surprised if Somer becomes the first Scottish astronaut with Areeb standing behind him ready to fill in.
“They are so imaginative and creative, I see no limits for them.”
