A large group of asylum seekers from the Balkan countries was deported over the weekend, after authorities determined they had no right to seek protection in Norway.
The police in charge of asylum cases (Politiets utlendingsenhet, PU) rounded up 78 would-be refugees from various asylum centers in eastern Norway early Saturday morning, drove them to Oslo’s main airport at Gardermoen and put them on a chartered flight out of the country.
Police officials told news bureau NTB that the rejected refugees came from Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia. Their applications for asylum had all been turned down under the terms of a new, so-called “48-hour rule,” which is aimed at expediting asylum cases.
Justice Minister Knut Storberget insisted all had received humane treatment but had no grounds for asylum in Norway.
Views and News staff
