LONDON: After the first flight was grounded by a European court, UK Home Secretary Priti Patel said the government will arrange for further flights to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.
"We believe we are fully compliant with our domestic and international obligations," Patel told Parliament on Wednesday, according to the Xinhua reports. "Preparations for the next flights have already begun."
In April, the United Kingdom and Rwanda reached an agreement under which illegal immigrants and asylum seekers will be sent to Rwanda to have their claims processed.
Instead of being allowed to return to Britain, if they are successful, they will be granted permanent status in Rwanda. Britain thinks that the arrangement, for which it paid Rwanda 120 million pounds (USD145 million) up front, will dissuade migrants from crossing the English Channel in small boats, which is dangerous.
At least 444 migrants crossed the English Channel on Tuesday, the biggest daily amount in two months. After a last-minute intervention by the European Court of Human Rights, the first flight, which was scheduled to take seven migrants to Rwanda on Tuesday night, was cancelled.
One of the migrants would face "a real risk of irreversible harm" if sent to Rwanda, according to the court. This allowed the remaining six migrants' lawyers were able to file successful appeals to halt their deportation.
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