Bellouzi

MEMORANDUM *

Petitioner Youssef Bellouzi, a native and citizen of Morroco, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ dismissal of his appeal from an Immigration Judge’s denial of his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture. He also alleges that the IJ violated his due process rights in disallowing the testimony of three of his witnesses. We deny the petition.

Substantial evidence supports the IJ’s finding that Bellouzi did not suffer past persecution on account of his failure to *212 observe Ramadan. An applicant claiming asylum based on past persecution must prove that he suffered mistreatment that (1) rose to the level of persecution; (2) was on account of a protected ground (race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion); and (3) was committed by the government or by forces that the government is unwilling or unable to control. See Baballah v. Ashcroft, 367 F.3d 1067, 1074 (9th Cir. 2004) (citation omitted). At most, Bellouzi suffered discrimination and harassment not rising to the level of persecution, at the hands of private actors whom Bellouzi did not…