Norway welcomed 600 African refugees in a bid to further its aim of putting an end to migrant smuggling across the Mediterranean.
The refugees have been evacuated to Rwanda from detention centres in Libya.
The 600 asylum seekers are part of a group of 800 migrants who had been moved to Rwanda from Libya under an agreement in September between Rwanda, the African Union (AU) and the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR). Many of them are from Horn of Africa nations and have been given temporary asylum-seeker status until the UNHCR determines their refugee status.
According to Norway's immigration minister, Joaran Kallmyr, the country wants to stop the deadly smuggling of migrants across the Mediterranean Sea. The minister said,"For me it is important to send a signal that we will not back smuggling routes and cynical backers, but instead bring in people with protection needs in organized form.''