Banished to alien lands: Trump’s secret deportation deals

Key Points:

• The Trump administration deported over 25,000 migrants to third countries where they had no ties, including more than 5,000 to African, Latin American, Caribbean, and Central Asian nations, often violating immigration judges' rulings protecting them from removal.
• Migrants like Nika, an Iranian woman deported to the Central African Republic (CAR), faced harsh treatment during deportation, including shackling and lack of information, and now live in fear and isolation in unfamiliar countries without legal status or support.
• The US secured agreements with at least 35 countries, mostly in Africa, pledging hundreds of millions of dollars to accept deported migrants, though many countries refuse those with violent criminal records; these arrangements are criticized as undermining asylum protections and violating due process.
• Human rights lawyers and a recent federal appeals court ruling condemned the third-country deportations as unlawful and cruel, highlighting the lack of notification and legal recourse for deportees, but the US government intends to continue the policy.
• Deportees face precarious living conditions, including threats, health issues like malaria, and psychological trauma, while organizations like the International Organization for Migration provide limited assistance amid concerns about complicity in the deportation program.