UN rights experts warn airlines could be complicit in UK‑Rwanda removals

Top independent United Nations rights experts said airlines and aviation authorities could be complicit in human‑rights violations if they facilitate removals of asylum seekers from the United Kingdom to Rwanda, U.N. reporting said.

The experts’ comments concerned a proposed agreement between the U.K. and Rwanda that had not yet been approved by U.K. lawmakers and was due to be debated in the House of Commons. The experts said that facilitating removals to Rwanda could violate international protections against refoulement and the right to be free from torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

"Even if the proposals are approved, airlines and aviation regulators could be complicit in violating internationally protected human rights and court orders by facilitating removals to Rwanda," the experts said. "They stressed that removing asylum seekers to Rwanda or any other country where there was a risk of refoulement violated the right to be free from torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. Airlines and aviation authorities must be held responsible for their conduct, the experts insisted." Daniel Johnson reported the account for U.N. news.

The experts called for responsibility and oversight of carriers and regulators if removal flights proceed; the U.K. parliamentary process and any court orders remain the determining factors for whether removals could occur.