The UN refugee agency Thursday voiced “concern” for the safety of 100 Arab citizens who went missing after seeking shelter in Algeria and others stranded at the border with Niger.
“Some 120 Syrian, Palestinian and Yemeni individuals were detained at the Tamanrasset Centre in southern Algeria before being taken to an area near the Guezzam border post (at the southern border with Niger) on 26 December,” the UNHCR said in a statement.
Some members of the group were “known to UNHCR as registered refugees who have fled conflict and persecution or claim to have attempted to seek international protection in Algeria”, it added.
The UN agency said 20 members of the group “remain stranded in the desert”, several kilometers from the Guezzam border post.
“The other 100 individuals who were taken to the border are unaccounted for,” it added.
Hacen Kacimi, an Algeria interior ministry official, told AFP on Thursday that a group of about 100 people, mostly Syrians from Aleppo, had been “expelled” on suspicion of links to extremist groups.
Kacimi, who heads the ministry’s migration department, said they had entered Algeria illegally and were put on trial in September and that the court ordered their expulsion.
His comments came after the Algerian League for the Defense of Human Rights on Monday denounced the deportation to Niger of 50 mostly Syrian migrants, including women and children, who were smuggled into the country in September.
Algeria refugees
Rights groups regularly criticize Algeria for its treatment of sub-Saharan migrants, many of whom are hoping to reach Europe.
An October report from the UN urged Algeria to stop collective expulsions of African migrants across its border with Niger, after rights groups accused Algiers of rounding up thousands of people and expelling them into the desert.
Algeria, which does not have asylum legislation, has faced an influx of sub-Saharan migrants in recent years, with rights groups estimating some 100,000 have entered the country in recent years.
Also Read
-
Struggling to survive, Syrian refugees in Lebanon fall deeper into debt
Syrian refugees in Lebanon are falling deeper into debt, with 2018 being the worst year yet, as more families marry off children to cope financially, ... Features -
From refugee to official: Pierre Kompany on being Belgium’s first black mayor
In October, the father of Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany, Pierre Kompany, made history by becoming the first black mayor in Belgium. The ... Features -
250,000 Syrian refugees could return home next year - UNHCR
Up to 250,000 Syrian refugees could return to their devastated homeland in 2019, while many others face problems with documentation and property that ... Middle East -
Stranded Syrian refugee leaves Kuala Lumpur airport for Canada
A Syrian refugee who spent several months in limbo in a budget terminal at a Malaysian airport has been granted permanent residency by Canada and is ... Middle East
