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A U.K. court has ruled that the country can send its first flight of asylum-seekers to Rwanda.
The flight, which will be the first of several approved as part of a controversial immigration plan, was allowed to head for the country after the High Court in London denied an injunction on Friday that would have blocked it from departing.
At least 30 people are set to be on the first plane, Sky News reported, which is expected to leave the United Kingdom next week.
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The human rights groups Care4Calais and Detention Action submitted papers to the High Court on Wednesday in an attempt to halt the departure, alleging the policy was “unlawful on multiple bases,” as part of its bid to get an injunction.
Several refugees scheduled to leave on these flights, resistant to the government’s efforts, announced on Wednesday that they are going on a hunger strike.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a member of the country’s Conservative Party, stressed the importance of obeying the law.
“We must ensure that the only route to asylum in the U.K. is a safe and legal one,” he said. “Those who try to jump the queue or abuse our systems will find no automatic path to set them up in our country but rather be swiftly and humanely removed to a safe third country or their country of origin.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The flights were announced as part of a new “economic development” partnership between the British and Rwandan governments that would send tens of thousands of refugees to Rwanda to complete their asylum process. In return, the British government will funnel the equivalent of over $156 million toward “economic development and growth” into Rwanda. The program would also help the U.K. distinguish between refugees who arrive via authorized and legal venues and those who arrive via smugglers, including dangerous Channel crossings.
Last year, over 28,000 migrants and refugees crossed the English Channel from mainland Europe to the U.K., up from a little over 8,000 in 2020.
