Forty-eight Uyghurs detained in Thailand for nearly 11 years are on hunger strike to protest against imminent deportation to China, where they face imprisonment or execution.

They were caught by the Thai authorities in 2014, fleeing from severe persecution in their home region of northern China. 

They had paid smugglers to take them to southeast Asia. From there, many planned to move to Turkey, where there is a diaspora of Uyghurs, ethnic Muslims with Turkic roots. 

Instead, they were captured, detained and now face deportation.

“Thailand is on the verge of handing us over to the Chinese government,” said a man who requested anonymity so that his phone would not be confiscated, in a voice message.

“This may be my last message to you all. We have been on a hunger strike since Jan 10; this is our plea for help.”

“We could be imprisoned, and we might even lose our lives,” the group wrote in a letter obtained by The Telegraph.