Pegah Emambakhsh wins!

Just received a message that finally, after far, far too long, Iranian lesbian Pegah Emambakhsh has refugee status in the UK.

No more detail yet but this is amazing news.

UPDATE:

"I could not believe it. I did not read any papers so far" Pegah said in a telephone conversation with IRQR today at 11:00 PM London time zone. She continued "Few hours ago I received a phone call from my lawyer that I granted refugee status. I will meet my lawyer tomorrow and I have to read that paper several time to make sure I am free from now. I hope all of people can achieve their dreams" This has been a long struggle but is a real vindication of what can be achieved when we all work together.

UPDATE: From article in The Independent:

Asylum rights groups have been pressing the British Government to introduce a moratorium on returning gay and lesbian refugees to Iran, where homosexuality is still considered a crime. But the Home Office made clear last night that it was not prepared to grant a blanket exemption in such cases. A spokesman for the UK Border Agency said: "We consider each case on its individual merits and, whenever someone needs our protection, we grant it. We constantly monitor the human rights situation in countries like Iran and press for an end to abuses, but we do not believe that everyone claiming to be a homosexual from Iran is in need of international protection."