Sargsyan

MEMORANDUM **

Nshan Sargsyan, a native of Syria and citizen of Armenia, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ order affirming without opinion an immigration judge’s (“IJ”) decision denying his applications for asylum, withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review for substantial evidence the agency’s denial of asylum, see Chebchoub v. INS, 257 F.3d 1038, 1042 (9th Cir.2001), and review de novo due process claims, see Colmenar v. INS, 210 F.3d 967, 971 (9th Cir.2000). We deny the petition for review.

As the IJ noted, Sargsyan’s testimony regarding his arrest in May 1998 was both internally inconsistent and inconsistent with his asylum application. For example, Sargsyan testified inconsistently as to whether he was alone in police custody, whether he was taken to a prison after his initial arrest and when an where he was interrogated. The IJ further noted a discrepancy between Sargsyan’s testimony and his application about the extent of his alleged participation in a July 2001 demonstration. Because these inconsistencies go to the heart of Sargsyan’s asylum claim,…