U.N. faults Sudan for deporting Ethiopian refugees

GENEVA - The United Nations refugee agency criticised Sudan on Thursday for deporting at least 15 Ethiopian refugees back to their homeland, saying it had breached international laws.

The deportation took place on Sept. 27, but only came to the attention of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) this week, the Geneva-based agency said in a statement, citing concerns about the refugees' safety in Ethiopia.

The 1951 U.N. Refugee Convention prohibits the forced return of people to countries of origin where they could face persecution.

The UNHCR said Sudan had previously pledged to stop deporting refugees back to Ethiopia after the agency raised concerns about a set of similar deportations in August.

"UNHCR was alarmed to discover that this commitment was not respected," it said, adding that the Sudanese government had not responded to repeated requests for information about the fate of up to 20 other Ethiopian refugees jailed in Sudan.

No information was immediately available about the identity of the Ethiopian refugees or why they faced danger at home.

The impoverished Horn of Africa country is fighting rebels in its troubled Ogaden region, ethnic Oromo rebels demanding greater autonomy and is embroiled in a border dispute with its neighbour Eritrea.