Story highlights Some 1,300 people are being held in Australian offshore detention centers

New deal would see at least some of them transferred to the US

(CNN) Australia will transfer hundreds of refugees currently held in offshore detention centers to the United States in a landmark deal announced Sunday.

The plan is a "one-off agreement. It will not be repeated," Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said at a press conference.

Turnbull added that the deal would only be available "to those currently in the regional processing centers" and will prioritize "women, children and families."

Around 1,300 people are currently being held in offshore detention on the Pacific Island nation of Nauru, and Papua New Guinea's Manus Island.

Shirdel Eskandari Khah is one of them. He has a young son and has been on Nauru for two and a half years, and told CNN he is "really happy" about the deal.

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