Full Breakdown
U.S. Deportation Flight Sends Iranian Activist and Others to the Central African Republic
6/15/2026, 4:20:40 AM
The Deportation Flight
On June 11-12 2024 a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement aircraft departed Alexandria, Louisiana, stopped in Accra, Ghana, and landed in Bangui, Central African Republic (CAR) shortly before 2100 GMT. Flight monitors recorded roughly 20-24 migrants on board, including nationals of Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Georgia, Jordan, Turkey, and Syria. Among the passengers was an Iranian pro-democracy activist; three Iranian women had originally been slated for removal, but only the activist was on the plane after emergency court orders halted the others.
Legal Background and Third-Country Agreements
Two Iranian women had previously received “withholding of removal” protection, a judicial finding that they faced a > 50 % chance of torture or persecution if returned to Iran. A rule requiring asylum seekers to apply first in transit countries—later vacated by a California federal court in May 2024—had been cited as the basis for denying their asylum claims. The Trump administration relies on secret “third-country” agreements that permit the United States to deport individuals it cannot repatriate to their home states. Rights groups label the deals legally opaque; the administration maintains they comply with U.S. law.
Key Actors
- Emily Trostle, attorney for the Iranian activist (Iranian American Legal Defense Fund, IALDF)
- Ali Rahnama, interim executive director, IALDF
- Sahar Jalili Pawelski, immigration lawyer for the Iranians
- President Donald Trump and his Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials
- President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, CAR’s head of state, whose government hosts the deportees with assistance from the Russian-linked Wagner group
- International Organization for Migration (IOM), providing voluntary post-arrival aid
Timeline
- Nov 2024: Two Iranian women arrive in the U.S. and file asylum claims.
- May 2024: California court vacates the “first-country-of-transit” rule.
- June 11 2024: Officials brief Reuters on the planned flight.
- June 12 2024: Flight lands in Bangui; migrants are temporarily housed at a firefighter-base near the U.S. embassy and other locations.
Data & Statistics
- ? 20-24 deportees on the first CAR flight.
- At least 2 Iranians on board; 3 Iranians originally targeted.
- The U.S. has signed similar deals with >= 7 African nations (including Ghana, Eswatini, Rwanda, Uganda) and >= 4 Latin American states (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras).
- Thousands of migrants have been sent to nearly 24 countries under the program.
Why It Matters
The operation tests the limits of U.S. asylum protections, raises humanitarian concerns about sending protected individuals to a nation under a Level 4 travel advisory, and highlights the geopolitical entanglement of CAR’s Russian security ties with Iran. It also illustrates a broader trend of “externalizing” border enforcement to fragile states.
Official Statements & Responses
- DHS spokesperson warned that “if you come to our country illegally, you could end up in CECOT, GITMO, or another third country.”
- The State Department’s travel advisory urges U.S. citizens to avoid CAR “for any reason” due to unrest, crime, kidnapping, health risks, and terrorism.
- DHS asserted that all deportees receive “full due process.”
- An IOM spokesperson said the agency would provide “post-arrival humanitarian assistance on a strictly voluntary basis” at the request of the CAR government.
Criticism & Opposition
Human-rights lawyers argue the flight “abandoned” protected migrants in a country where they have “no status, no connection and no support network.” The National Iranian American Council’s Jamal Abdi called the action “a total disregard for the law, due process… and the wellbeing of Iranians.” Justice Fellow Korbin Felder described the policy as “treating human beings as cargo.” Rep. Yassamin Ansari labeled the deportations “evil beyond words.”
On-the-Ground Reports
Sources close to the U.S. embassy said men and women were separated upon arrival and temporarily housed at a firefighter-base under construction near the embassy compound, with other detainees placed in undisclosed locations.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Sources differ on the exact passenger count (? 20 vs. ? 24) and on how many Iranian women were on the flight (one vs. three). No official detail has been released on the duration of the migrants’ stay in CAR or on any plan for onward removal.
Verbatim Quotes
- “They have absolutely no connection to this place. In all of my filings I submitted tons of information about how this was super dangerous,” — Emily Trostle, attorney
- “At the very moment the United States is promising the Iranian people freedom and support for standing against the Islamic Republic, it is sending Iranian asylum seekers who fled that same regime back toward their demise,” — Ali Rahnama, IALDF
- “These reckless actions unfortunately reflect a total disregard for the law, due process of these detainees, and the wellbeing of Iranians as a whole,” — Jamal Abdi, National Iranian American Council
- “The Trump administration is racing to put people on planes and send them to countries they have no connection to, treating human beings as cargo instead of people with rights,” — Korbin Felder, Center for Constitutional Rights
- “My heart breaks for these women. It’s evil beyond words,” — Rep. Yassamin Ansari
- “[i]f you come to our country illegally, you could end up in CECOT, GITMO, or another third countries.” — DHS spokesperson
What’s Next
U.S. officials indicate that “hundreds of migrants could ultimately be deported” to CAR under the agreement, while lawyers prepare emergency petitions and congressional members call for oversight. The IOM’s voluntary assistance and the lack of transparent monitoring leave the long-term safety of the deportees uncertain.
