Human rights advocates are demanding to know why the UN’s refugee agency hasn’t done more to secure the Uyghurs’ right to asylum.

United Nations human rights experts have urged Thailand not to send 48 Uyghurs in its custody back to China, warning they are at risk of torture, ill-treatment and "irreparable harm" if returned.

The United Nations called on Thailand on Wednesday to immediately halt the deportation of 48 Uyghurs to China, warning that the detainees face a real risk of torture, enforced disappearance, and

Authorities in Thailand on Wednesday denied there was an immediate plan to send back to China 48 Uyghurs held in the Southeast Asian country's detention centers after United Nations experts warned that the group could face torture if they return.

Thailand’s government insists there are no immediate plans to deport the 48 detainees, who fled China and were arrested in Thailand in 2014.

US President Donald Trump's incoming secretary of state is among those calling for Thailand not to deport a group Uyghurs to China, where it is feared they would face persecution.

The experts’ statement comes less than a week after Republican Sen. Marco Rubio said he would lobby Thailand against deporting the 48 Uyghurs to China during a hearing on his nomination for the post of U.S. secretary of state, which he was confirmed for on Monday.

The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has called on Thailand to immediately stop the planned deportation of 48 Uyghurs to China, citing serious risks of torture and inhumane treatment.