The UK Home Office has confirmed the deportation of a record number of Nigerians and Ghanaians on a single flight, with 44 individuals forcibly removed from the country on Friday. This marks the largest deportation flight to these nations in recent history, as the UK government intensifies its immigration enforcement efforts.
The mass deportation comes as new plans emerge to transfer asylum seekers arriving at the Chagos Islands to Saint Helena, a remote British territory in the Atlantic Ocean. This arrangement is expected to take effect before the UK finalizes a treaty with Mauritius to return control of the Chagos Islands, with the agreement anticipated next year.
Notably, the Saint Helena relocation plan does not apply to the roughly 60 Tamil asylum seekers who have been stranded on Diego Garcia since 2021. They are currently involved in a legal battle, challenging their detention as unlawful. A ruling on their case is expected soon.
While the number of asylum seekers arriving on Diego Garcia remains in the hundreds, it pales in comparison to the tens of thousands who have crossed the English Channel in small boats from France. On Friday alone, over 600 people made the dangerous journey, according to Home Office statistics.
Since the Labour government took office in July, a significant increase in deportations has been noted, with more than 3,600 individuals sent back to various countries, including 200 to Brazil and 46 to Vietnam and Timor-Leste. Deportation flights to Nigeria and Ghana have been rare, with only four recorded since 2020, making Friday's operation, with over double the previous number, particularly notable.
In an interview with *The Guardian*, four Nigerians detained at the Brook House Immigration Removal Centre near Gatwick shared their distressing experiences before their deportation. One man, who had spent 15 years in the UK as an asylum seeker without a criminal record, expressed despair over the rejection of his claim by the Home Office. Another, who bore scars from torture, said he had been a victim of trafficking but saw his application similarly rejected.
Fizza Qureshi, CEO of the Migrants’ Rights Network, criticized the lack of transparency and access to legal support for the deportees, calling the removals "cruel" and politically motivated. One detainee lamented, “The Home Office is playing politics with people’s lives. We have not done anything wrong other than cry for help.”
A Home Office spokesperson defended the increased deportations, stating, "We are delivering a major surge in immigration enforcement to remove people with no right to be in the UK, ensuring the rules are respected and enforced."
The surge in deportations comes amid growing concerns about the UK's handling of asylum seekers and its broader immigration policies, with over 28,000 people crossing the Channel in small boats so far this year.
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