The Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps in northern Kenya are home to more than 410,000 people, a small portion of whom are from South Sudan.
Nairobi authorities first announced their intention to close the Dadaab camp, which is closer to the Somali border than Kakuma, in 2016, and cited national security concerns.
Interior Minister Fred Matiang’i has given UNHCR 14 days to draw up a plan for the closure of both Dadaab and Kakuma, his ministry said in a tweet, adding that there was no margin for further conversations on the subject.
UNHCR urged Kenya to ensure that those in need of protection continue to obtain protection and pledged to maintain a dialogue.
“The decision would have an impact on the protection of refugees in Kenya, including in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,” it said in a statement.
Somali authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Kenyan government’s attempt to close Dadaab in 2016 was reported by intelligence reports showing two major attacks on Kenyan targets in 2013 and 2015 with the participation of elements in the camps. The plan was blocked by the high court, which described the measure as unconstitutional.
The camp was established three decades ago and was the largest refugee camp in the world, which at its peak housed more than half a million people fleeing violence and drought in Somalia.
Kakuma, located in the northwest, is home to more than 190,000 refugees, some from neighboring South Sudan.
Kenyan authorities told the UNCHR on Tuesday that it would take the refugees to the Somali border if the camps were not closed, the Daily Nation reported. The Interior Ministry told Reuters the reports were accurate.
Kenya’s move comes as relations with Somalia worsen, after Mogadishu severed diplomatic ties with Nairobi last December, accusing it of interfering in its internal affairs.
The two nations are also facing the International Court of Justice over a maritime border dispute, although Kenya has boycotted the case view.
Kenya’s Interior Ministry told Reuters that the decision to close the camps was not related to diplomatic difficulties with Somalia.