Australia to send 57 refugees deemed a threat to island detention site for treatment

FILE PHOTO: Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks during the INPEX Gala Dinner in Darwin, Australia November 16, 2018. David Moir/Pool via REUTERS

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Fifty-seven male asylum seekers deemed to be a security risk will be sent to a remote Pacific island detention centre for medical treatment instead of Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday.

Under Canberra's hardline immigration policy, asylum seekers trying to reach Australia by sea are intercepted and sent for processing to camps in Papua New Guinea and the tiny South Pacific island of Nauru - a policy criticised internationally.