Human Rights Watch released a report asserting that the deportation of migrants from the United States to third-party African nations contravenes international law and utilizes human suffering as a deterrent against migration. The group stated that most deportees have limited alternatives but to eventually return to their countries of origin, despite potential harm they may face there.
Since the current administration took office in 2025, more than 500 individuals have been sent to African countries of which they are not nationals, according to data cited by the rights group. The US Department of Homeland Security characterized these removals as an important public safety measure aimed at removing individuals with serious criminal histories from US territory. Immigration enforcement has been a central policy focus of the current administration.
According to the report, several African nations receiving deportees have engaged in arbitrary detention or facilitated transfers back to deportees’ home countries without their consent, potentially exposing individuals to persecution or torture. The group documented cases in Eswatini, Ghana, and South Sudan involving arbitrary detention and ill-treatment. In Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and Ghana, deportees were transferred to their countries of origin in apparent violation of the principle of nonrefoulement, which prohibits returning individuals to places where they face torture or threats to their safety.
HRW interviewed 24 individuals across six African nations and documented accounts of abusive treatment during deportation flights, including extended periods in restraints and deprivation of adequate food, water, and medication. The group noted that at least a dozen individuals identifying as LGBT were sent to countries that criminalize same-sex relationships, including some who had received US protection based on persecution risks in their home nations.
The White House stated that deportees sent to third countries were individuals whose home nations refused readmission or who had court orders preventing their return home. Officials indicated that individuals wishing to return could receive government-arranged flights and financial assistance. Neither the African countries involved nor their governments have issued public responses to the report’s allegations.
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