Asylum seekers flee detention centre

Three asylum seekers who were being held at the Phosphate Hill detention centre on Christmas Island have escaped.
The Department of Immigration says the escape of three men was noticed during a routine check by detention staff on Friday morning at the site which houses 135 Afghan, Iranian and Sri Lankan asylum seekers.
The Phosphate Hill facility is separate to the new $400 million detention centre built by the Howard government, which will be opened this weekend.
That centre, North West Point, will accept about 37 asylum seekers intercepted 200km north-east of Darwin on Tuesday.
An Immigration Department spokesman says it is the first escape from a Christmas Island detention facility in several years.
The Phosphate Hill detention centre's staff and Australian Federal Police are searching for the three men.
"It is important to remember that immigration detention centres are not correctional facilities," the spokesman said.
"Immigration detention balances the need to provide appropriate security with a suitable environment for people who are unlawful non-citizens."