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- The UNHCR has helped evacuate 132 asylum seekers from Libya to Rwanda.
- They are from Eritrea, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, and South Sudan.
- The First group of failed asylum seekers in the UK leaves for Rwanda on 14 July.
The United Nations Higher Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Tuesday announced the arrival of asylum seekers from Libya to Rwanda.
In a statement, the refugee body said the asylum seekers were from the Horn of Africa.
"UNHCR today [Tuesday] helped evacuate 132 vulnerable asylum seekers from Libya to the Emergency Transit Centre in Rwanda – the 9th such flight of its kind.
"The group, mostly from Eritrea, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, and South Sudan, includes women and young children," the UNHCR said.
The refugees were transferred under the UN Emergency Transit Mechanism founded in November 2017.
READ | UK aims to send the first group of asylum seekers to Rwanda on 14 June
Under the mechanism, the UNHCR said, the group will stay at the transit facility while durable solutions are sought for them, including resettlement, voluntary return to countries where they had previously been granted asylum, countries of origin whenever it is safe to do so, or integration with local Rwandan communities.
Ahmed Baba Fall, UNHCR representative in Rwanda, said the country was a safe place with the support of the international community for refugee rehabilitation.
He said:
In April, Rwandan President Paul Kagame said the reason behind his country being a preferred destination for the refugee programme was because of his record as AU chairperson in 2018.
At the time, there were refugees stuck in Libya trying to cross into Europe. Some reportedly died on the Mediterranean Sea, and that others were languishing in Libyan prisons. Kagame offered to help them.
WHO said, since then, Rwanda had received more than 900 asylum seekers, with 67% of them resettled to third countries.
Meanwhile, the first flight carrying illegal immigrants that arrived in the United Kingdom without authorisation is scheduled to leave on 14 June, reports say.
Those who will be on that flight are already in government detention.
The News24 Africa Desk is supported by the Hanns Seidel Foundation. The stories produced through the Africa Desk and the opinions and statements that may be contained herein do not reflect those of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
