Zohrabyan
Zohrabyan v. Gonzales
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM **
Vanik Zohrabyan, a native and citizen of Armenia, petitions for review of the Board *872 of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) per curiam decision dismissing his appeal and affirming the immigration judge’s denial of his applications for asylum, withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1252 , and we deny the petition for review.
Substantial evidence supports the BIA’s adverse credibility determination, given the inconsistencies between Zohrabyan’s asylum application and his testimony regarding the harassment alleged and the omission regarding the alleged arrests, which go to the heart of his asylum claim. See Chebchoub v. INS, 257 F.3d 1038, 1043 (9th Cir.2001). The BIA did not err by requiring corroboration of religious affiliation and medical treatment under these circumstances, and Zohrabyan offers no credible explanation for failure to submit readily-available evidence. See Mejia-Paiz v. INS, 111 F.3d 720 , 723-24 (9th Cir.1997).
Because Zohrabyan failed to establish eligibility for asylum, he necessarily failed to meet the more stringent standard for withholding of removal. See…