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Deceased Sudanese Refugee 'Should Not Have Been In Detention' On Manus Island

Refugee advocates have hit out after the death of a Sudanese refugee.
An asylum seeker has died in a Brisbane hospital after being airlifted from Manus Island detention centre.
Stringer . / Reuters
An asylum seeker has died in a Brisbane hospital after being airlifted from Manus Island detention centre.

Refugee advocates have hit out at the Turnbull Government following the death of a Sudanese man who was airlifted to hospital from the Manus Island detention centre.

The Immigration Department released a statement on Saturday confirming the man, named as Faysal Ishak Ahmed by the Refugee Action Coalition (RAC), passed away in Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital after being airlifted from the controversial PNG facility.

Ahmed reportedly collapsed on Manus Island and suffered head injuries.

The Department said it was not aware of any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of the 27-year-old.

"The Department is not aware of any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death and expresses its sympathies to his family and friends," it said in a statement.

The Huffington Post Australia has sought the Immigration Department for comment.

RAC spokesman Ian Rintoul said while the details of Ahmed's matter remained unclear, he should not have been in detention in the first place.

"We do not yet know the precise case of Faysal's death whether it is the head injuries he suffered or his underlying medical condition," Rintoul said in a statement.

"What we do know is that he should not have been in detention, should not have been on Manus Island and was denied the medical attention he needed. Faysal is another fatal victim of Australia's brutal detention regime.

"Justice demands that Manus is closed now -- and that those who were sent to Manus are all brought to Australia."

It has been claimed that Ahmed suffered blackouts and collapses over the past few months, according unverified reports on social media.

The reports also suggest that numerous letters had been written to authorities about Ahmed's health problems in the months before his death.

Pictures posted to Facebook purport to show damage to property at the Manus detention centre in the wake of the man's death.

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