Thai authorities in Bangkok have arrested more than 60 Montagnard Christian migrants who faced persecution in Vietnam and have also drawn criticism from the U.S. government for deporting 40 Uighur ethnic minorities back to China.

The United States Embassy in Bangkok on Friday issued a security alert for its citizens in Thailand, a day after the deportation of a group of Uyghurs

Thailand deported 40 Uyghurs to China despite appeals from the United States and from rights groups that feared they would be abused.

Rights groups criticized the Thai government for sending the Uyghurs, a persecuted Muslim minority, back to China, where they face the risk of torture and imprisonment.

Rights advocates had said the Uyghurs, a persecuted Muslim minority in China, were “at real risk” of torture, imprisonment or even death if they were returned.

The Thai government violated domestic and international law by forcibly sending at least 40 Uyghur men to China, where they could face torture, arbitrary detention, and long-term imprisonment.

Analysts say Thailand's deportation of 100 Uighurs in July 2015 led to a deadly bombing a month later. Read more at straitstimes.com.