Ghana forcibly deports hundreds of people who had fled extremist violence in Burkina Faso, says U.N.

ACCRA, Ghana — Ghana has forcibly deported hundreds of people fleeing violence from Burkina Faso, the United Nations refugee agency said Thursday.

Approximately 251 people were expelled, most of them women and children seeking safety in northern Ghana, according to UNHCR.

“It’s not a voluntary repatriation,” Alpha Seydi Ba, senior communications officer for UNHCR, told The Associated Press.

In a statement Wednesday, the UN called on Ghana to cease these expulsions “and guarantee access to the territory and asylum to nationals of Burkina Faso seeking international protection.”

Under international human rights law, the principle of non-refoulement guarantees that no one should be returned to a country where they would face torture, cruel or degrading treatment, or punishment. The UN’s statement said Ghana was violating the principle.

Extremist violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group has ravaged the West African nation for years, killing thousands and displacing more than 2 million people internally. Thousands more have fled across the border.

As of last July, nearly 40,000 people had left, with half going to Mali, more than 11,000 to Niger and 8,000 to Ghana.

The United Nations has been collaborating with Ghanaian authorities to protect the asylum seekers.

A reception center has been established in Ghana’s Upper East region with the capacity to hold several thousand displaced people.

Ghana’s security ministry said the accusations that people were expelled were baseless and Burkina Faso citizens who wanted to return were being repatriated.

“The repatriation process is consistent with international protocols on the management of refugees, and has so far been implemented in collaboration with Burkinabe immigration authorities along the Ghana-Burkina Faso border,” said the ministry.

In a letter addressed to Ghanian authorities Wednesday, Burkina Faso’s foreign affairs ministry said those repatriated weren’t able to take their belongings with them and asked the Ghanaians to allow people to retrieve their things.