US Deports About 24 Migrants to Central African Republic, Including Iranian Activist
Updated
Updated · DW (English) · Jun 13
US Deports About 24 Migrants to Central African Republic, Including Iranian Activist
3 articles · Updated · DW (English) · Jun 13
Summary
Bangui received a US deportation flight late Friday carrying about two dozen migrants from Louisiana, including an Iranian pro-democracy activist and nationals of Jordan, Armenia, Turkey, Georgia and Afghanistan.
ICE flight records showed the plane stopped in Accra before landing, while a source close to the US Embassy said some deportees were taken to a firefighters' base near the embassy compound and men and women were separated.
The Iranian activist's lawyer said the group had no legal status, ties or support network in Central African Republic, warning they could ultimately be pushed back to the countries they fled.
The women faced removal after their asylum claims were denied under a transit-country rule that a California federal court vacated in May, though the administration has kept using third-country deportation deals.
Those deals with Central African Republic, Ghana and at least seven other African nations are part of Trump's wider migrant crackdown; advocates say the US has already sent thousands to nearly two dozen non-home countries.