Khachatrian

MEMORANDUM ***

Arthur Khachatrian, a native and citizen of Armenia, petitions for review from a Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) affirmance of an immigration judge’s denial of asylum, withholding of removal and relief under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review adverse credibility determinations for substantial evidence, see Chebchoub v. INS, 257 F.3d 1038, 1042 (9th Cir.2001), and we deny the petition for review.

The agency’s adverse credibility determination rests on, among other things, inconsistencies between Khachatrian’s testimony, his asylum interview and his application regarding the length of his detention, whether he participated in a particular political demonstration and what occurred at that demonstration. See id. at 1043 . As these inconsistencies go to the heart of Khachatrian’s asylum claim, the agency’s adverse credibility determination is supported by substantial evidence. See id. Furthermore, the agency properly relied on the asylum officer’s assessment because Khachatrian was given an opportunity to cross-examine the asylum officer and he declined to do so. See Rojas-Garcia v. Ashcroft, 339…