The United Kingdom government has deported 44 Nigerians and Ghanaians on a single flight, marking the largest deportation of individuals in recent history, the Home Office confirmed on Friday.
Grassroots Parrot gathered that the deportation comes amid a broader crackdown on immigration by the UK government, which has ramped up enforcement efforts since the Labour government took office in July.
The Home Office revealed that 3,600 people have been deported to various countries under the new government’s immigration push.
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This includes 200 deportations to Brazil and 46 people flown to Vietnam and Timor-Leste, with regular flights continuing to Albania, Lithuania, and Romania.
However, deportations to Nigeria and Ghana are less frequent, with only four recorded since 2020. This latest flight more than doubled the number of deportees compared to previous ones.
Among the deportees was a Nigerian man who attempted suicide while being held at Brook House immigration removal center near Gatwick Airport before his deportation.
His cellmate described the experience as “very traumatizing.” Another deportee expressed frustration, saying, “I have been an asylum seeker in the UK for 15 years with no criminal record, yet the Home Office has denied my claim.”
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Fizza Qureshi, CEO of the Migrants’ Rights Network, criticized the deportations for their “cruelty, secrecy, and lack of access to legal assistance.” She quoted one detainee who said, “The Home Office is playing politics with people’s lives. We have done nothing wrong but seek help.”
A Home Office spokesperson defended the government’s actions, stating, “We have already launched a significant increase in immigration enforcement and returns to ensure compliance with the law, with over 3,600 removals carried out in the first two months of the new government.”