CAT/C/21/D/88/1997 page 7 article 3 of the Convention not to expel or to return a person to another State where there are substantial grounds for believing that he would be in danger of being subjected to torture. 6.3 The Committee must decide, pursuant to paragraph 1 of article 3, whether there are substantial grounds for believing that the author would be in danger of being subjected to torture upon return to Iraq. In reaching this decision, the Committee must take into account all relevant considerations, pursuant to paragraph 2 of article 3, including the existence of a consistent pattern of gross, flagrant or mass violations of human rights. The aim of the determination, however, is to establish whether the individual concerned would be personally at risk of being subjected to torture in the country to which he or she would return. The existence of a consistent pattern of gross, flagrant or mass violations of human rights in a country does not as such constitute a sufficient ground for determining that a particular person would be in danger of being subjected to torture upon his return to that country; specific grounds must exist indicating that the individual concerned would be personally at risk. Similarly, the absence of a consistent pattern of gross violations of human rights does not mean that a person cannot be considered to be in danger of being subjected to torture in his or her specific circumstances. 6.4 The Committee is aware of the serious human rights situation in Iraq and considers that the author's history of detention in that country as well as the possibility of his being held responsible for his son's defection from the army should be taken into account when determining whether he would be in danger of being subjected to torture upon his return. The Committee also considers that the presentation of the facts by the author do not raise significant doubts as to the general veracity of his claims and notes that the State party has not expressed doubts in this respect either. In the circumstances, the Committee considers that substantial grounds exist for believing that the author would be in danger of being subjected to torture if returned to Iraq. 6.5 The Committee notes that the Swedish immigration authorities had ordered the author's expulsion to Jordan and that the State party abstains from making an evaluation of the risk that the author will be deported to Iraq from Jordan. It appears from the parties' submissions, however, that such risk cannot be excluded, in view of the assessment made by different sources, including UNHCR, based on reports indicating that some Iraqis have been sent by the Jordanian authorities to Iraq against their will, that marriage to a Jordanian woman does not guarantee a residence permit in Jordan and that this situation has not improved after the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding between the UNHCR and the Jordanian authorities regarding the rights of refugees in Jordan. The State party itself has recognized that Iraqi citizens who are refugees in Jordan, in particular those who have been returned to Jordan from a European country, are not entirely protected from being deported to Iraq. 7. In the light of the above, the Committee is of the view that, in the prevailing circumstances, the State party has an obligation to refrain from forcibly returning the author to Iraq. It also has an obligation to refrain