Full Breakdown
Police in Equatorial Guinea Point Guns at U.S. Deportees at Malabo Hotel
9/9/2026, 9:25:38 AM
Incident at the Malabo Hotel
On September 5, police officers in Equatorial Guinea’s capital, Malabo, drew firearms on migrants who had been transferred there under a U.S. third-country removal agreement. Witnesses say the confrontation began when an Egyptian deportee, Ahmed Soliman, filmed an exchange after a Cuban national asked for his confiscated mobile phone. Officers reportedly cocked the weapons, removed safeties and forced several detainees to kneel at gunpoint for 10–15 minutes before the hotel director intervened and allowed the group to return to their rooms.
Background of Third-Country Deportations
The Trump administration negotiated “third-country” arrangements with several African states, including Equatorial Guinea, to relocate migrants the United States could not legally return to their home countries. Under these deals, individuals who had previously received protection from U.S. immigration judges—because they faced a risk of torture or other abuse—were transferred abroad. The U.S. government maintains that the removals comply with immigration law and are carried out using “all legal options.”
Data on Deportees
- 53 people were sent to Equatorial Guinea between November 2025 and July 2026, according to Third Country Deportation Watch, a tracker run by Refugees International and Human Rights First.
- The deportees originate from 11 African nations plus Georgia, Jamaica, Brazil, and Cuba.
- 31 deportees are reported to be housed in the Malabo hotel at the time of the September 5 incident.
Criticism and Human-Rights Concerns
Human-rights groups have warned that the opaque nature of the third-country deals leaves deportees vulnerable to arbitrary detention and possible forced repatriation to nations where they face persecution. Meredyth Yoon, litigation director for Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, argued that the episode underscores the danger to migrants’ lives.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Once again, evidence demonstrates that deporting people to Equatorial Guinea is putting their lives in danger. I hope that someone will not be seriously injured or killed,” — Meredyth Yoon, litigation director for Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, a legal advocacy group
- “That is when they started assaulting us, grabbing my neck, my shirt, trying to dig the phone out of my pocket," Soliman told Reuters.” — Ahmed Soliman
