Fourteen Gambians who were facing deportation from Germany Wednesday got last minute reprieve due to coronavirus, Gambiana has learned.

The flight with the Gambian migrants at Frankfurt airport Germany was cancelled before takeoff.

Yaya Sonko, spokesman for Gambia Refugee Association in Germany, confirmed that one of the passengers onboard the flight confirmed the cancellation. 

Mr Sonko no reason was given for the flight cancellation and that the migrants were still held in an immigration detention centre in Frankfurt.

However the Gambian authorities have confirmed that the deportation flight was halted followings dialogue with their German counterpart about a surge in coronavirus cases in The Gambia.

“So, this was possible due to the current surge in number of COVID-19 cases. That is to say the deportation was cancelled due to the insurgence of the coronavirus pandemic,” Saikou Ceesay, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the Voice newspaper.  

Mr Ceesay said he could not confirmed whether the deportation would still go ahead in the future when the coronavirus situation improves.

“This I can tell you is still based on a further engagement with our European partners,” he said.