Bangkok: An 18-year-old Saudi woman seeking asylum has left Bangkok airport "under the care" of the UN refugee agency, a Thai official said Monday, following her desperate plea against deportation.
"She is allowed to stay... she is under the care of the UNHCR now," said immigration chief Surachate Hakparn. "She left the airport with the UNHCR."
On Sunday, she was held at Bangkok airport and alleged that she would be killed if she was repatriated by Thai immigration officials, who had confirmed the 18-year-old was denied entry to the country.
Rahaf Mohammed M Alqunun told AFP she was stopped by Saudi and Kuwaiti officials when she arrived in Suvarnabhumi airport and her travel document was forcibly taken from her, a claim backed by Human Rights Watch.
"They took my passport," she told AFP, adding that her male guardian had reported her for traveling "without his permission". Rahaf said she was trying to flee her family, who subjected her to physical and psychological abuse
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