UK government plan to deport migrants to Rwanda is unlawful, court rules

The British government's plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda is unlawful, London's Court of Appeal ruled on Thursday in a judgment that gives a blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's pledge to stop migrants from arriving on small boats.

The three senior appeal court judges ruled, by a majority, that Rwanda could not be treated as a safe third country.

Judge Ian Burnett said the majority found "the deficiencies in the asylum system in Rwanda are such that there are substantial grounds for believing that there is a real risk that persons sent to Rwanda will be returned to their home countries where they face persecution and other inhumane treatment".