U.S. sends dozens of migrants to African third‑country detention centers

The United States deported dozens of migrants on Thursday and Friday to four African nations—Equatorial Guinea, Sierra Leone, Ghana and the Central African Republic—under a “third‑country” policy that redirects individuals the U.S. cannot return to their home countries. Each flight carried roughly ten people, many of whom have no national ties to the destination country. The operations used aircraft that refueled in Senegal, which has become a logistical hub for these transfers.

The deportations are part of the Trump administration’s restrictive immigration strategy, which relies on financial incentives and visa‑restriction threats to secure agreements with African partners. Human‑rights groups say the expelled migrants often lack proper documentation, face indefinite detention, and are sometimes held in hotels without legal status. In Sierra Leone, a total of 32 migrants have been received under a U.S.‑funded “Third Country Nationals” agreement that allows up to 300 arrivals per year. NGOs have filed complaints with the African Commission, calling the practice a violation of refugee protections.

The policy has drawn criticism from immigration lawyers and human‑rights organizations, which argue that the expulsions exploit legal loopholes and place vulnerable people at risk of persecution in the receiving countries.