Story perspectives

Vietnam Man Returns After Year in South Sudan Detention

6/19/2026

Summary

Tuan Phan Returns Home

Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that 44-year-old Tuan Phan returned from South Sudan on Friday after more than a year in detention.
He had been sent to South Sudan in July 2025 under a United States (U.S.) third-country deportation program that relocated over 180 people.
Human-rights groups criticize the program for opaque agreements, unclear detention conditions, and the unresolved status of other migrants from Cuba, Myanmar and Laos.

Summary

Phan Returns Home

Phan was one of eight men forcibly moved to South Sudan in July 2025 under the program.
U.S. Homeland Security said the eight deportees, including Phan, had completed or nearly completed sentences for violent crimes such as murder, sexual assault and robbery.
Ambassador Agok Anyar said Phan stayed disciplined, joyful and healthy, thanked both governments, praised South Sudan’s treatment and hinted at a future interview about his 25-year U.S. conviction.

Summary

Phan Repatriated

South Sudan’s foreign ministry said Tuan Thanh Phan’s repatriation was coordinated with Vietnam.
The Vietnamese foreign ministry did not comment when Reuters asked about the return.
This is the second known South Sudan transfer of a third-country national, part of at least eight deportations under President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration agenda that have drawn international scrutiny.

History

Historical Context

The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 created removal proceedings and authorized third-country transfers; between 1996 and 2020 the United States DHS completed over 1.5 million removals, 12 % abroad. In 2025 Vietnamese national Tuan Phan was sent to South Sudan, illustrating the act’s distant-nation policy under the United States immigration framework.

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Tuan Phan Returns Home

Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that 44-year-old Tuan Phan returned from South Sudan on Friday after more than a year in detention.
He had been sent to South Sudan in July 2025 under a United States (U.S.) third-country deportation program that relocated over 180 people.
Human-rights groups criticize the program for opaque agreements, unclear detention conditions, and the unresolved status of other migrants from Cuba, Myanmar and Laos.

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