U.S. Deportations to Iran and Other High-Risk Nations Amid War Planning

In late January 2026, as the Trump administration prepared airstrikes on Iran, it deported 18 people there; they arrived days before the first bombs fell. In the 13 months before, more than 200 individuals were sent to Iran despite State Department travel warnings.

The Guardian

TPS, a program that lets nationals stay in the U.S. if their home countries are unsafe, was slated for termination for nine nations—including Venezuela, Somalia, Haiti and Afghanistan—by the Trump administration. Officials called the move condition-based; critics argue it creates a pretext for broader removals.

The Guardian

Key actors include the Trump administration, the State Department, ICE, and monitors such as Human Rights First, the Marshall Project, the Center for Immigration Studies, Human Rights Watch, the National Iranian American Council, plus scholars Susan Akram, Andrew Arthur, Jennifer Chacón and Ryan Costello.

The Guardian

Independent analysis recorded over 21,000 deportations to 23 dangerous countries. At least 600 deportees were children. More than 18,000 were sent to Venezuela (?200 non-citizens) and over 1,300 to Haiti. Since September, three planeloads—totaling dozens—were flown to Iran, carrying a Christian convert and a political dissident, and ICE also sent three people to North Korea.

The Guardian

The State Department kept travel advisories for 23 nations, warning U.S. citizens but noting they do not cover foreign nationals. Officials said deportations complied with due-process, as those removed were found not at heightened risk. The administration called TPS terminations condition-based, not punitive.

The Guardian

Legal scholars say the deportations breach refugee and non-refoulement rules; Human Rights First said a Christian convert and a political dissident on the Iran flights faced risk, and critics view the practice as contradictory to danger labels and a pretext for broader removals.

The Guardian

ICE declined inquiries about criteria for deporting individuals to unsafe countries, and its data do not record asylum claims. Travel advisories cover only U.S. citizens, leaving a policy gap for foreign nationals; the figures rely on independent analyses, not official data.

The Guardian

• “immoral and totally inhumane” — Susan Akram, Boston University International Human Rights Clinic

The Guardian

• “It just seems like a horrific policy,” — Ryan Costello, National Iranian American Council

The Guardian

• “It flies in the face of what [Temporary Protected Status] is supposed to do.” — Jennifer Chacón, Stanford Law School

The Guardian

• “There are entire neighborhoods that are controlled by criminal gangs that set up the rules and then kill people who don’t follow their orders,” — Juan Pappier, Human Rights Watch

The Guardian

Federal courts are hearing TPS challenges. Congressional committees scheduled hearings on ICE’s practices, and advocates demand asylum-data transparency. An escalation of the planned Iranian airstrike would likely intensify scrutiny of deportations to Iran and other high-risk destinations.

The Guardian