A recent report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) has criticized the US government's deportation of migrants to third-party African countries, citing that the practice is against the law and exploits suffering to deter migration. According to HRW, since Donald Trump returned to the White House in 2025, more than 500 people have been sent to African countries where they are not citizens.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has defended the deportation program, stating that "third country removals are an essential public safety tool that remove the most dangerous criminal illegal aliens from our streets". However, HRW argues that many deportees have no practical option but to return to their home countries, regardless of the harm they face there.
HRW has documented cases of deportees being arbitrarily detained or sent to their home countries, where they face the risk of persecution or torture. The group interviewed 24 third-country nationals in six countries, who described "abusive treatment" during their deportation flights, including being chained for about 18 hours and denied access to essential medication, food, or water.
The report also highlights concerns about the opaque deals that facilitate these transfers, some of which are still secret, and are part of a US policy that violates international human rights law. HRW cites an unnamed US official as saying that the administration's goal is to "scare people" by threatening to drop them in the middle of nowhere.
Eswatini, which welcomed 32 deportees from the US, has announced that it is committed to ensuring the "rights, dignity and well-being of third-country nationals were respected and protected". However, HRW says that some countries accepting deportees have a history of human rights abuses, including Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and Ghana.
The report also notes that at least a dozen people who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) were sent to African states that criminalize same-sex relations, including refugees granted protection in the US based on the likelihood they would be persecuted back home because of their orientation or gender identity.
In response to the report, DHS stated that ICE is given diplomatic assurances from destination countries that the illegal aliens being removed there will be safe. However, HRW argues that these assurances are often not enough to protect deportees from harm, and that the US policy is designed to cause human suffering as a means to deter migration.
Key points
- Human Rights Watch says US deportations to African countries are unlawful and exploit suffering.
- Over 500 people have been deported to African countries since Donald Trump's return to the White House in 2025.
- Deportees have faced arbitrary detention, ill-treatment, and risk of persecution or torture in their home countries.
