Rwandans arrive in Australia after perilous journey to claim asylum

Hunters reportedly find five Rwandan men in mangroves on Saibai Island, a known crocodile habitat

As the UK government continues its push to forcibly remove asylum seekers to Rwanda, a group of Rwandan nationals has claimed asylum in Australia after arriving by boat on a remote island.

The five men arrived in Australia by an unconventional route, reportedly flying into the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, to be granted visas on arrival, before travelling thousands of kilometres east to Indonesia’s Papua province, where they crossed the land border it shares with Papua New Guinea (PNG).

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Starmer to rip up Rwanda scheme and fund new anti-smuggling unit

Labour leader to promise to divert £75m to fund specialist force against smugglers using counter-terror powers

Keir Starmer will promise to rip up the government’s Rwanda scheme and divert £75m to fund hundreds of new specialist officers to tackle people-smuggling with new counter-terror powers.

At a speech on Friday in Dover – the home of Natalie Elphicke, who defected to Labour this week after criticising Tory failures on border security – the Labour leader will call the government’s plan “an insult to anyone’s intelligence” and say “the gangs that run this sick trade are not easily fooled”.

Create a new post of border security commander to oversee the unit, working across Europe and with multiple agencies on enforcement and intelligence.

Recruit hundreds of additional special investigators, intelligence agents and cross-border police officers.

Expand stop and search powers for use against those suspected of people-smuggling.

Use Serious Crime Prevention Orders, enforced on terrorists pre-conviction, to shut off the bank accounts and internet access of suspected smugglers.

Extend seizure warrant powers normally reserved for terrorism to include organised immigration crime.

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Asylum seekers ‘hide or flee to Ireland’ to avoid UK Rwanda detentions

Charities fear ‘increasing risks of destitution and exploitation’ of refugees as they go into hiding

The Home Office is dealing with growing fallout from the high-profile round-ups of asylum seekers it wants to send to Rwanda, as some have gone into hiding while others have fled across the border to Ireland.

Officials began rounding up asylum seekers to detain them for the Rwanda scheme a week ago, with at least one now on hunger strike and another threatening suicide.

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Rwanda admits it can’t guarantee how many asylum seekers it will take in from UK

About 52,000 people are eligible under the scheme, but a government spokesperson said Kigali would accept ‘thousands’

Rwanda has admitted it cannot guarantee how many people it will take from the UK under Rishi Sunak’s deportation scheme.

The east African country did not give assurances that the estimated 52,000 asylum seekers in the UK who are eligible to be sent to Kigali would be accepted, instead saying it would be “thousands”.

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Bomb attacks in Congo kill at least 12 people including children

The UN says two camps for displaced people were hit near the city of Goma where thousands are seeking refuge from fighting in surrounding areas

Bomb attacks on two camps for displaced people in eastern Congo have killed at least 12 people, including children, according to the UN.

The bombs hit the camps in Lac Vert and Mugunga, near the city of Goma, the UN said in a statement, calling the attacks a “flagrant violation of human rights and international humanitarian law and may constitute a war crime”.

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Detained asylum seekers given Home Office booklet saying Rwanda is ‘generally safe’

Glossy promotional leaflet handed out to asylum seekers detained under Rishi Sunak’s deportation policy

Asylum seekers who have been detained under Rishi Sunak’s deportation policy are being handed a colourful promotional document entitled: “I’m being relocated to Rwanda. What does it mean to me?”

The news came as the government faced a second legal challenge over the prime minister’s £500m policy and it emerged that dozens of asylum seekers were being forcibly taken to detention centres.

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Lone children at risk of deportation to Rwanda after being classified as adults, says charity

Refugee Council sounds warning after children wrongly issued with notices of intent by Home Office

Lone child asylum seekers are at risk of being sent to Rwanda because the Home Office has wrongly classified some as adults, it has been claimed.

The Refugee Council, which works with these children, has warned of the risk after more than a dozen of the children it works with were wrongly issued with notices of intent for Rwanda.

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Man detained by Home Office told he is being sent to Rwanda, says NGO

Sudanese man being held in Croydon after arriving for routine sign-in believed to be first potential deportation under new law

An asylum seeker who turned up for a routine Home Office appointment on Monday was detained and told that he was being sent to Rwanda, an NGO has said.

In what is believed to be the first potential deportation case under the Rwanda scheme since Rishi Sunak’s bill received royal assent, the Sudanese man was held in Croydon, south London, the organisation Soas Detainee Support (SDS) told the Guardian.

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Rwandan opposition leader voices doubts Kigali will stick to UK asylum deal

Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza says her banning shows Rwandan government does not adhere to international law

A Rwandan opposition leader who has been banned from standing for election has cast doubt on whether her government will stick to the terms of the deportation deal agreed with Rishi Sunak.

Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza told the Guardian that the Rwandan government’s refusal to allow her to stand or leave the country to see her ill husband showed that the government under Paul Kagame did not adhere to international law.

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Home Office has lost contact with thousands of potential Rwanda deportees, data shows

Minister says ‘officers are used to this’, as figures suggest Home Office is in contact with only 38% of people it wants to remove

The Home Office is “used to” losing contact with asylum seekers, a UK government minister has said, after official figures suggested thousands of people it hoped to deport to Rwanda had stopped reporting.

The impact assessment on the Home Office’s website on Monday suggests the department is in contact with 38% of those it intends to remove to Rwanda. Only 2,145 “continue to report to the Home Office and can be located for detention”, the impact assessment says, of the 5,700 it has identified to put on the first flights.

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Sunak: rise in asylum seekers in Ireland proves Rwanda plan ‘having impact’

UK PM points to Irish deputy PM’s claim that threat of being deported led people to cross border from Northern Ireland

An increase in asylum seekers heading to to Ireland proves that the Conservative party’s Rwanda plan is working, Rishi Sunak has claimed.

In an interview with Sky News’ Trevor Phillips that will air on Sunday morning, the prime minister said the “deterrent is already having an impact because people are worried about coming here”.

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UK Rwanda policy is ‘kneejerk reaction’ to migration, says Ireland’s deputy PM

Micheál Martin says UK asylum seekers fearful of being removed to Rwanda are seeking sanctuary in Ireland

The UK government’s Rwanda policy has been described as a “kneejerk reaction” to migration by Ireland’s deputy prime minister, who said an influx of asylum seekers could arrive in Ireland as a result.

Micheál Martin, Ireland’s Tánaiste, reportedly said asylum seekers fearful of being removed from the UK to Rwanda were seeking sanctuary in Ireland.

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Rwanda flights will deport asylum seekers ‘indefinitely’, says Cleverly

Home secretary visits Lampedusa in Italy as National Audit Office says scheme could surpass £580m by 2030

Several flights a month will deport asylum seekers to Rwanda “indefinitely”, the home secretary has said, as he argued that the £1.8m a person cost of the scheme was justified.

James Cleverly, in his first interview since the government’s plan was approved by parliament on Monday, said he had booked a succession of initial flights and was preparing to order the detention of people seeking refuge in the UK so they could be sent to east Africa.

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Sunak claims there is ‘element of compassion’ to Rwanda policy because it is meant to stop dangerous Channel crossings – UK politics latest

Prime minister says that deaths of five people attempting to cross the Channel shows need to stop boats and bill is intended to stop people smuggling

Rishi Sunak has said that the deaths of five people who were crossing the Channel in the early hours of this morning underlines the need to stop the boats.

Speaking to reporters on his plane to Poland, he argued that there was an “element of compassion” in his Rwanda policy because it is intended to stop people smuggling. He said:

There are reports of sadly yet more tragic deaths in the Channel this morning. I think that is just a reminder of why our plan is so important because there’s a certain element of compassion about everything that we’re doing.

We want to prevent people making these very dangerous crossings. If you look at what’s happening, criminal gangs are exploiting vulnerable people. They are packing more and more people into these unseaworthy dinghies.

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Sunak ‘confident’ civil service will enact Rwanda bill despite legal concerns

Union threatens ministers with legal action amid fears staff could be obliged to breach civil service code and international law

Rishi Sunak has said he is confident Home Office staff will enact the Rwanda deportation scheme, despite fears that could put them in breach of international law.

The FDA, the union for senior civil servants, has threatened ministers with legal action if they are forced to implement the government’s Rwanda deportation bill.

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Council of Europe human rights watchdog condemns UK’s Rwanda bill

Commissioner expresses grave concern after Rishi Sunak’s asylum policy passes parliamentary stages

The Council of Europe’s human rights watchdog has condemned Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda scheme, saying it raises “major issues about the human rights of asylum seekers and the rule of law”.

The body’s human rights commissioner, Michael O’Flaherty, said the bill, expected to be signed into law on Tuesday after passing its parliamentary stages on Monday night, was a grave concern and should not be used to remove asylum seekers or infringe on judges’ independence.

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UK passes bill to send asylum seekers to Rwanda

Lawyers prepare for legal battles on behalf of individual asylum seekers challenging removal to east Africa

Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda deportation bill will become law after peers eventually backed down on amending it, opening the way for legal battles over the potential removal of dozens of people seeking asylum.

After a marathon battle of “ping pong” over the key legislation between the Commons and the Lords, the bill finally passed when opposition and crossbench peers gave way on Monday night.

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Rwanda bill clears parliament after peers abandon final battle over safety amendment – as it happened

Bill could become law this week as end of parliamentary ping-pong in sight

Q: Do you think you will be able to implement this without leaving the European convention of human rights?

Sunak says he thinks he can implement this without leaving the ECHR.

If it ever comes to a choice between our national security, securing our borders, and membership of a foreign court, I’m, of course, always going to prioritise our national security.

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Rwanda bill: what does the latest delay mean?

Flights have been pushed back to summer after the House of Lords spoke out for Afghans and refugees – here’s what to expect over the coming weeks

Rishi Sunak’s plan to fly people seeking asylum to Rwanda this spring appears to have been put back to the summer after House of Lords insisted on changes to the scheme.

On Thursday the prime minister’s spokesperson said the Lords were responsible for any delay after attaching unwanted amendments to the deportation bill.

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