Dozens of suspected asylum seekers who arrived in Australia illegally by boat have been deported to an offshore detention centre.
The group of 39 men claiming to be from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh landed on a remote coastline near Beagle and Pender Bays in northern Western Australia on Friday.
They have since been deported to the offshore detention center on the Micronesian island of Nauru, northwest of Papua New Guinea.
The arrival sparked a political firestorm as Opposition Leader Peter Dutton took aim at Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for leaving Australia’s borders.
Mr Albanese hit back, saying his government strongly supports Operation Sovereign Borders, and criticized Mr Dutton for politicizing the arrival of the men.
He also described the opposition leader as a ‘cheer squad’ for human smugglers.
A group of 39 suspected asylum seekers (pictured) claiming to be from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh have been deported to Nauru after sneaking past border police and arriving in Australia by boat.
Mr Albanese told reporters in Perth on Sunday that the “issue” had been resolved.
“The only person who is in a cheerleading position is Peter Dutton and he needs to explain how they think the comments he has made to put Australia down are appropriate,” the Prime Minister said.
Mr Albanese said he is “not trying to politicize national security issues” and condemned Mr Dutton’s comments on the issue.
“I think that says more about him than anything,” he said.
Mr Albanese said his government’s “position on Operation Sovereign Borders is very clear” and that no one who arrives in Australia illegally by boat “will not settle here”.
Operation Sovereign Borders was created by the Abbott government in 2013 to reduce the number of illegal immigrants seeking asylum in Australia by boat.
“I have great confidence that Operation Sovereign Borders has been established,” Albanese said.
“It’s the same system that worked before, and we’ll be making announcements shortly about what happened there through Operation Sovereign Borders, when that happens. ‘
The group of suspected asylum seekers were found by locals in indigenous communities before authorities descended on the area and detained them.
The men were found on Friday by Indigenous communities near Beagle and Pender Bay, northern Western Australia, before authorities descended on the area (pictured)
No boat has been found in the area, but authorities are investigating the possibility that the group was dropped off by Indonesian fishermen.
One of the asylum seekers told the newspaper ABC that they had spent five days at sea, en route from Indonesia to Australia.
After being dropped off at the beach, the group walked about 35km, he said, before being picked up by locals.
Mr Dutton, who previously oversaw Operation Sovereign Borders as Immigration Minister, said people smugglers were trying to exploit “a weak prime minister and a weak (immigration) minister”.
“(Mr Albanese will) tell you he supports Operation Sovereign Borders, but those are not the actions he took,” he said on Sunday.
“We know that $600 million was taken from Border Force and from Operation Sovereign Borders on a cumulative basis in the last budget; as the Commissioner of the Australian Border Force points out, they are stretched thin.
The suspected asylum seekers were taken to the offshore detention center on Nauru on Sunday after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese defended his government’s position on immigration.
“They look at every word and action of the government, and they package it, they pitch it in a sales pitch to people who are willing to pay money. The fact is that we have a weak Prime Minister when it comes to our borders.
“He let this boat through. I think it’s number 12 of the boats that have come through so far, and the Prime Minister is reaping what he sows.”
WA Premier Roger Cook admitted the incident highlighted the need to ensure WA’s north-west coast was adequately protected.
“This is essentially a matter for the federal government to solve,” Cook said.
“That’s why we must continue to ensure we have the resources to protect our coasts.”
A boat carrying a dozen asylum seekers landed on the Australian coast last November, on a rural stretch of the Anjo Peninsula, the northern tip of Western Australia.
State Liberal Party MP Neil Thomson told Daily Mail Australia at the time that arrivals were an “obvious concern” for Australians and indicative of the federal government’s position on asylum seekers.