WASHINGTON — US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday (Feb 27) condemned Thailand's return of at least 40 Uyghurs to China, where Washington says members of the Muslim group have faced genocide.

The move by Thailand, a US ally, came despite urging by United Nations human rights experts not to return the Uyghurs the Thai government has held in detention for a decade, warning they were at risk of torture, ill-treatment and "irreparable harm" if returned.

Rights groups and some Western governments accuse Beijing of widespread abuse of Uyghurs, an ethnic minority numbering about 10 million in China's western region of Xinjiang. Beijing denies any wrongdoing.

"We condemn in the strongest possible terms Thailand's forced return of at least 40 Uyghurs to China, where they lack due process rights and where Uyghurs have faced persecution, forced labour, and torture," Rubio said in a statement.

The top US diplomat said Thailand risked "running afoul of its international obligations" under the UN Convention Against Torture and other global conventions, and called on Thai officials to "fully verify continuously" that Chinese authorities protect Uyghurs' human rights.

"We urge all governments in countries where Uyghurs seek protection not to forcibly return ethnic Uyghurs to China," Rubio said.

Rubio, who was a staunch advocate for Uyghurs when he served as a US senator, reiterated that Beijing's treatment of the group had amounted to "genocide and crimes against humanity," a designation the US first made in the waning hours of President Donald Trump's first term in 2021.

The Biden administration maintained the genocide designation, enraging Beijing, and the issue since has been a sticking point in rocky US-China relations.

Rubio said during his confirmation hearing in January that he would use the strong US relationship with Thailand to prevent the Uyghurs from being sent back.

China denies allegations of forced labour toward Uyghurs, arguing it had established "vocational training centres" in recent years to curb terrorism, separatism and religious radicalism.

The Thai embassy in Washington did not respond immediately to requests for comment on Rubio's remarks.

China's embassy said the repatriation was "carried out in accordance with the laws of China and Thailand, international law and common practises" and that the "lawful rights and interests of individuals concerned are fully protected."

"We stand firmly against the attempts to use human rights as a pretext to interfere with China's internal affairs and to use Xinjiang-related issues to disturb normal law enforcement co-operation between countries," embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu said in an emailed response.

Concerns about the repatriations grew in Thailand early on Thursday after media reports and images showed several trucks with windows covered in black tape leaving the Bangkok immigration centre where 48 Uyghurs had been held.

Those 48 Uyghurs were part of a group of 300 who fled China and were arrested in 2014. Some were sent back to China and others to Turkey, with the rest kept in Thai custody.

A few hours later, at 4.48 am, an unscheduled China Southern Airlines flight left the Don Mueang airport in the Thai capital to land six hours later in Kashgar in China's Xinjiang region, tracker Flightradar24 showed.

Thailand's defence minister later said the Uyghurs had been sent back in accordance with international standards, and that China had assured Thailand the individuals it returned would be looked after.

Source: Reuters