Tale-Lopez

MEMORANDUM **

Manuel Tale-Lopez and Paulino TaleChocho, natives and citizens of Guatemala, petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ order affirming, without opinion, an immigration judge’s (“IJ”) order denying their applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review for substantial evidence, Lim v. INS, 224 F.3d 929, 933 (9th Cir.2000), and deny the petitions for review.

Tale-Lopez testified that he was stopped while walking to work in August 2002 by a group of about 30 armed men who threatened that Tale-Lopez must join them or die. Tale-Lopez also testified that he never saw the men again. Contrary to Tale-Lopez’s contentions, the evidence does not compel the conclusion that this incident rose the level of persecution, see id. at 936-37 , or that Tale-Lopez’s fear of returning to Guatemala is objectively reasonable, see Rodriguez-Rivera v. U.S. Dep’t of Immigration and Naturalization, 848 F.2d 998, 1006 (9th Cir.1988). Because Tale-Lopez failed to establish eligibility for asylum, he necessarily failed to meet the higher burden for withholding of…