The High Court in Nairobi, Kenya has temporarily blocked the Kenyan government from repatriating refugees and asylum seekers in Kakuma and Dadaab refugee camps.
According to NTV, a Kenyan media, the two orders; against the closure of the camps and the repatriation of the refugees, will remain in force until July 7 when the cases will be mentioned for directions.
Justice Anthony Mrima issued the order following a petition filed by rights advocacy group Kituo Cha Sheria, challenging Interior minister Fred Matiang’i’s announcement on the government’s intention to shut the two refugee camps last month.
Judge Mrima ordered the consolidation of the petition with another one filed earlier by former presidential aspirant Peter Gichira on April 8, in which a court suspended the closure of the camps.
The Kenyan government last month issued a two-week ultimatum to the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR to shut the Kakuma and Dadaab camps, without any room for further dialogue.
The Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps host more than 400,000 refugees mainly from Somalia but also South Sudan and Ethiopia. Kakuma is home to at least 100,000 South Sudanese and 55,000 Somali refugees. Over 500 South Sudanese are seeking refuge in the Dadaab camp, according to recent figures by UNHCR.