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The first British flight carrying asylum seekers to Rwanda failed to take off as scheduled on Tuesday after the European Court of Human Rights issued court orders preventing some migrants from being deported on board.
The British government’s plan to send some migrants to the East African country has been criticized by opponents, charities and religious leaders who say it is inhumane, and has faced a series of legal challenges in London courts to prevent it from happening.
An activist holds a banner against migrants bound for Rwanda near London’s Heathrow Airport (Photo: Reuters/Henry Nichols)
In recent days, at least 30 people who were due to leave on the first flight said they should not be deported to Rwanda for health or human rights reasons, and they did.
Only a handful of migrants were due to travel from an air base in southwest England on Tuesday, but shortly before the plane left, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) issued court orders halting their deportation.
“I have always said this policy will not be easy to implement and I am disappointed that legal challenges and last-minute allegations prevented today’s flight,” Home Secretary Priti Patel said.
“The intervention of the European Court of Human Rights is very surprising despite repeated previous successes in our domestic courts.”
She said that the government will not be deterred and will prepare for the next trip.
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