Case Name: Omer DESIC, Petitioner, v. Eric H. HOLDER, Jr., United States Attorney General, Respondent
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 2009-07-30
Citations: 338 F. App'x 108
Docket Number: No. 08-4746-ag
Parties: Omer DESIC, Petitioner, v. Eric H. HOLDER, Jr., United States Attorney General, Respondent.
Judges: PRESENT: ROBERTA. KATZMANN, B.D. PARKER and RICHARD C. WESLEY, Circuit Judges.
Reporter: West's Federal Appendix
Volume: 338
Pages: 108–110

Head Matter:
Omer DESIC, Petitioner, v. Eric H. HOLDER, Jr., United States Attorney General, Respondent.
No. 08-4746-ag.
United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.
July 30, 2009.
Andrew P. Johnson, New York, NY, for Petitioner.
Michael F. Hertz, Acting Assistant Attorney General; Barry J. Pettinato, Assistant Director; Julia J. Tyler, Trial Attorney, Office of Immigration Litigation, Civil Division, United States Department of Justice, Washington, DC, for Respondent.
PRESENT: ROBERTA. KATZMANN, B.D. PARKER and RICHARD C. WESLEY, Circuit Judges.
Pursuant to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 43(c)(2), Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., is automatically substituted for former Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey as the respondent in this case.

Opinion:
SUMMARY ORDER
Petitioner Omer Desic, a citizen of Bosnia and Montenegro, seeks review of an August 29, 2008 order of the Board of Immigration Appeals ("BIA") affirming Immigration Judge ("IJ") Noel Ferris's January 31, 2007 decision denying his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture ("CAT"), and ordering him removed to Bosnia or, in the alternative, Montenegro. In re Omer Desic, No. [ AXX XXX XXX ] (B.I.A. Aug. 29, 2008), aff'g No. [ AXX XXX XXX ] (Immig. Ct. N.Y. City Jan. 31, 2007). We assume the parties' familiarity with the underlying facts and procedural history of the case.
Where, as here, the BIA issues an opinion that fully adopts the IJ's decision, we review the IJ's decision. See Chun Gao v. Gonzales, 424 F.3d 122, 124 (2d Cir.2005). We review the agency's factual findings under the substantial evidence standard. See 8 U.S.C. § 1252(b)(4)(B); see also Manzur v. U.S. Dep't of Homeland Security, 494 F.3d 281, 289 (2d Cir.2007). We review de novo questions of law and the application of law to undisputed fact. Salimatou Bah v. Mukasey, 529 F.3d 99, 110 (2d Cir.2008).
As an initial matter, we find that Desic waived any challenge to the IJ's determination that he failed to demonstrate his eligibility for relief from removal to Bosnia. See Yueqing Zhang v. Gonzales, 426 F.3d 540, 541 n. 1, 545 n. 7 (2d Cir.2005). Because Desic failed to challenge the IJ's conclusions regarding his claims for relief from removal to Bosnia, and because the IJ designated that country as the primary country of removal, we need not address Desic's challenges to the IJ's alternate decision to order him removed to Montenegro.
Nevertheless, we note that substantial evidence supports the IJ's finding that Desic failed to satisfy his burden of proof as to his application for relief from removal to Montenegro. Indeed, Desic's experiences in Montenegro do not rise to the level of persecution. See Ivanishvili v. U.S. Dep't of Justice, 433 F.3d 332, 341 (2d Cir.2006) (noting that persecution "does not encompass mere harassment"). Moreover, in support of his argument that the IJ erred in finding that he failed to demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution in Montenegro, Desic relies on country conditions evidence for Serbia. Accordingly, as the IJ did not err in finding that Desic failed to demonstrate his eligibility for asylum as to Montenegro, he did not err in denying Desic's application for withholding of removal and CAT relief as to that country, where all of his claims were based on the same factual predicate. See Paul v. Gonzales, 444 F.3d 148, 156 (2d Cir.2006).
For the foregoing reasons, the petition for review is DENIED. As we have completed our review, the pending motion for a stay of removal in this petition is DISMISSED as moot.