NGOs accuse the British government of trying to deport unaccompanied minors to Rwanda

LONDON, 5 Jun. (DPA/EP) -

Refugee organizations have accused the British Home Office of trying to deport unaccompanied minors to Rwanda in a "worrying pattern" of asylum seekers under 18 who London classifies as adults.

Refugee charity Care4Calais is currently involved in a dispute with the Home Office over two teenagers who were issued removal notices.

While the children say they are 16 years old, the Home Office, after carrying out age assessments, states that they are 23 and 26 years old respectively.

"It is essential that proper age assessments are carried out before any deportation takes place," the charity said in a statement. "One of the 16-year-olds saw his brother killed in front of him when his village was raided in Sudan. He escaped and returned later to find that the entire village had disappeared," he adds.

Anti-trafficking charity Love146 UK also expressed alarm at the government's age assessment system for asylum seekers. His campaign manager, Daniel Sohege, has assured the newspaper 'The Guardian' that the charity finds that children "as young as 14 years old are incorrectly evaluated as 23."

"The number of children we have seen receiving the year 1999 as their date of birth when they are clearly under the age of 18 is very worrying and puts young people at risk."

These accusations come after the Home Office said it would not remove anyone from the UK if it is "unsafe or inappropriate" to do so, and denied that unaccompanied minors were among those sent to Rwanda as part of the government's controversial plan. to expel immigrants.

Earlier this week, Home Secretary Priti Patel reiterated that she was "absolutely determined" for the UK to send migrants to Rwanda despite the possibility of legal challenges from human rights groups.

The Home Office has begun formally notifying migrants of their move to Rwanda, with the first deportation flight expected to leave on June 14 as the "final administrative step" in its partnership with the East African nation.