Saudi woman ‘under care of’ UN refugee body

UNHCR’S SPOKESMAN IN GENEVA BABAR BALOCH SAID RAHAF LEFT THE AIRPORT TO A SAFE PLACE IN THE CITY AND OFFICIALS WOULD SOON INTERVIEW HER

BANGKOK: The Saudi woman who made a desperate plea for asylum after landing at Bangkok airport has been placed “under the care” of the United Nations refugee agency, a Thai official said late on Monday.

Rahaf Mohammed al-qunun told AFP that she ran away from her family while travelling in Kuwait because they subjected her to physical and psychological abuse. The 18-year-old said she had planned to seek asylum in Australia and feared she would be killed if repatriated by Thai immigration officials who stopped her during transit on Sunday.

The incident comes as Saudi Arabia faces intense scrutiny over the shocking murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year, which has renewed criticism of the kingdom’s rights record.

Thai immigration chief Surachate Hakparn had said on Sunday that Rahaf was denied entry because of her lack of documents.

But he made an abrupt aboutface the next day, following a global media frenzy as the young woman pleaded on Twitter for different countries to help her.

After announcing that Thailand “will not force her” to leave, Surachate told reporters late on Monday that Rahaf would be “allowed to stay” after a meeting with officials from the UN refugee agency UNHCR.

“She is under the care of the UNHCR now, but we also sent Thai security to help take care (of her),” Surachate told reporters at Suvarnabhumi airport.

He said Rahaf had told UNHCR officials she “wants to stay in Thailand for a while, while seeking asylum to a third country”.

The agency “will take five days to consider her status” and another five days to arrange for travel, Surachate said, adding that he would meet with Saudi diplomats on Tuesday to explain Thailand’s decision.

A relieved Rahaf tweeted that she felt safe “under UNHCR protection with the agreement of Thailand authorities”, adding that her passport had been returned to her after being taken away on Sunday.

UNHCR’S spokesman in Geneva Babar Baloch has confirmed that Rahaf had “left the airport to a safe place in the city” and said agency officials would interview her once she has some rest.

Rahaf had earlier posted a video on Twitter of her barricading her hotel room door with furniture in a bid to stop her deportation from Thailand.