Dual national stripped of Swiss citizenship for first time
In addition to Swiss citizenship, the man was also deprived of cantonal and municipal citizenship.
Keystone
The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) has withdrawn Swiss citizenship from a dual national for the first time. The man had been sentenced to several years in prison for carrying out propaganda and recruiting fighters for an Islamist terrorist organisation.
The SEM pointed out in a statementExternal link on Wednesday that, according to Article 42 of the Federal Act on Swiss CitizenshipExternal link, “the SEM may, with consent of the authority in the canton of origin, revoke the Swiss, cantonal and communal citizenship of a person holding dual nationality if his or her conduct is seriously detrimental to the interests or the reputation of Switzerland”.
According to Article 30 of the Ordinance on Swiss CitizenshipExternal link, this is the case if the person has committed a serious crime in connection with terrorist activities or violent extremism.
These conditions have been fulfilled in the present case, the SEM said. In addition to Swiss citizenship, the man was also deprived of cantonal and municipal citizenship. The SEM did not divulge the second nationality of the man despite swissinfo.ch’s request for information citing data protection obligations.
The decision of the SEM is not yet final. The man can lodge an appeal with the Federal Administrative Court.
At the beginning of June, the government said it had identified more than a dozen dual nationals suspected of having participated in crimes committed abroad as part of terrorist activities.
Several cases
Switzerland revoked dozens of passports for security reasons during the Second World War and the years thereafter, but this is the first time it has done so based on the citizenship law effective since 1953.
The Swiss government has had several cases in which it proposed revoking citizenship from those with multiple nationalities, including a 19-year-old Swiss-Italian man it identified in 2016 as having been a suspected IS jihadist.
In that case, Swiss authorities suspended proceedings after concluding the man had probably died after travelling from the city of Winterthur to Syria to join the group in 2015.
More
More
The citizens that Switzerland would like to disown
This content was published on
Should a young dual citizen be stripped of his Swiss passport after going to fight for the Islamic State in Syria?
Is artificial intelligence an advantage or a disadvantage for workers?
What is your experience with AI at work? Have you already used it? Has it helped you work better? Or has it caused you more stress, more work or caused you to lose your job? Tell us about your experiences!
Swiss price watchdog slams excessive prices for generic medicines
This content was published on
The cheapest generic medicines available in Switzerland are more than twice as expensive as in other countries, according to a study by the Swiss price watchdog.
Nature should not figure in net zero calculations: academic study
This content was published on
The natural removal of CO2 from the atmosphere by forests or oceans should not be included in the net-zero balance of climate protection measures, argue researchers.
This content was published on
None of the 15 major Swiss retail banks is meeting international climate and biodiversity targets, according to a ranking by WWF Switzerland.
This content was published on
Nestlé's new CEO Laurent Freixe, has presented plans for the future of the world's largest food company, after his first few weeks in office.
Swiss foreign minister calls on Moscow to end Ukraine war
This content was published on
It's high time Moscow ended its war against Ukraine, Swiss foreign minister Ignazio Cassis tells the UN Security Council.
This content was published on
The only alternative to the UN Palestinian agency’s work in Gaza is to allow Israel to run services there, Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, told reporters in Geneva on Monday.
Study reveals food culture differences between Switzerland and neighbours
This content was published on
Three-quarters of Swiss people consider eating to be a pleasurable, social activity, a new survey reveals. Healthy eating, however, plays a much less important role, it found.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Switzerland pursues dozens of cases against jihadi suspects
This content was published on
Switzerland’s Office of the Attorney General (OAG) is currently pursuing criminal proceedings in some 70 cases linked to jihadi terrorism.
Swiss suspect arrested over killing of Nordic tourists in Morocco
This content was published on
A Swiss-Spanish dual national has been arrested in Morocco on suspicion of aiding terrorists who beheaded a Danish and Norwegian hiker in the Atlas mountains.
Swiss revoke citizenship of radicalised dual nationals
This content was published on
The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) has started proceedings to strip several radicalised dual nationals of their citizenship, SRF reports.
Swiss dual citizens of barred countries may enter US with visa
This content was published on
“Swiss dual citizens who are additionally citizens of Iraq, Iran, Syria, Libya, Sudan, Somalia or Yemen are once again allowed to travel to the United States with immediate effect, provided they have a valid visa in their Swiss passport,” the ministry said in a statementExternal link after talks with US authorities. Such Swiss dual nationals…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.