Over 500 Nigerians who fled into northern Cameroon to escape Boko Haram Islamists have been forced to return to Nigeria, the UN refugee agency said on Wednesday.
Thousands of Nigerians have been displaced by the Boko Haram insurgency, which has staged deadly attacks since 2009 in pursuit of a caliphate in northern Nigeria.
In a statement to AFP, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said it was “very concerned” after 517 Nigerians were expelled, including 313 who had requested asylum.
The agency said it planned to sign an accord with Cameroon and Nigeria on March 2 for the voluntary return of 85 000 Nigerian refugees.
