UK Tory MP says he was deported from Djibouti due to criticisms of China

A former government minister who has had sanctions imposed on him by China has said he was detained and deported by Djibouti as a "direct consequence" of the east African country's close ties with Beijing. Tim Loughton, the Conservative MP for East Worthing and Shoreham since 1997, said he was held for more than seven hours at the airport earlier this month, barred entry to Djibouti, and told he was being removed on the next available flight. China imposed sanctions on seven parliamentarians including Loughton in 2021 over what it called the spreading of "lies and disinformation" about human rights…