World · Trump admin23,000 Deported to Countries They've Never BeenAired August 28, 2026 at 2:40 PM UTCWritten September 7, 2026 at 9:22 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00More than 23,000 people have been deported to countries they have never called home.0:04The U.S.0:04has secured agreements with more than 30 countries to accept them, including one0:08under a State Department do not travel warning.0:10How is this happening while a federal judge has already called the policy unlawful?0:14The number is not an official government count.0:16It comes from advocacy tracking that monitors flights, public records, and court0:20filings.0:21The bulk of the transfers went to Mexico, about 20,000 people.0:24More than 2,700 were sent to other Latin American and Caribbean destinations.0:29Over 330 were transferred to African countries where the consequences have been0:33sharpest, and more than 200 went elsewhere.0:36The country that has drawn the most scrutiny is the Central African Republic.0:40It is under a State Department Level 4 Do Not Travel Advisory due to armed conflict,0:45political instability, crime, and terrorism.0:48The State Department's own guidance to U.S.0:50citizens traveling there tells them to prepare wills and DNA records.0:54A U.S.0:54delegation met in Bangui around May 18, 2026, to arrange the transfers with terms0:59undisclosed.1:01The first deportation flight arrived on or around June 12th to 13, carrying roughly1:0618 to 25 people, including nationals from Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Turkey, Georgia,1:12Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Cameroon, Armenia, and Iraq.1:16A second, larger flight of roughly 80 migrants, including Cubans, Ecuadorians, and1:20Hondurans, arrived in late July and early August.1:24The program is running against protections U.S.1:26immigration courts grant when a person cannot be returned home.1:29Withholding of removal is a court order barring the United States from sending1:33someone back to a country where persecution is more likely than not.1:37People carrying that protection are still removed to third countries, not home.1:41So the removal order can be satisfied.1:43An Iranian pro-democracy activist with that protection was on the June flight.1:47Her attorney, Emily Trostel, said requests for a fear interview were ignored, and1:51the destination was not disclosed until the day before departure.1:55Afghan nationals whose cases have been identified are also facing transfer despite1:59protection orders.2:06The program is being fought in court.2:08In February 2026, a federal judge in Massachusetts ruled the policy unlawful and2:12imposed a 15-day stay.2:14In March 2026, the First Circuit allowed it to proceed, creating a circuit split.2:18As of late August, the policy remains in effect, with no nationwide injunction and2:22no Supreme Court intervention.2:24On June 25th, 2026, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that the administration can end2:29temporary protected status for Haitians and Syrians, opening the way to terminate2:33protections for roughly 350,000 Haitians and about 6,100 Syrians.2:38On June 5th, a coalition filed a complaint with the African Commission on Human and2:42Peoples' Rights against Equatorial Guinea on behalf of 14 deportees held in2:46arbitrary and indefinite detention.2:48On July 7th, the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund and Public Citizen Litigation2:52Group sued in U.S.2:53District Court for the District of Columbia, alleging DHS illegally shared2:57confidential asylum file details with the Iranian government.3:00DHS denies the charge.3:02The agreements themselves are often opaque, sometimes brought into the open only3:06through litigation.3:07Some came with money.3:08The Liberia arrangement linked to roughly $124 million in assistance, and the3:13Central African Republic deal reported in connection with $81.85 million in funding.3:19DHS did not respond to questions about the car agreement.3:21So what remains unresolved?3:23One district court has called the policy unlawful.3:26An appeals court has let it operate.3:27The Supreme Court has not weighed in.3:29As those cases proceed, the people already transferred live with the result, without3:33status, without documents in countries they were never from, and with the risk that3:37the chain of removals carries them on to the danger U.S.3:40courts had already determined they must not face.Explore with HeyDexFollow via RSSThe shortThe short ↗