Tracking All of Trump’s Third-Country Removals (That We Know Of)
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This is a comprehensive list of all known third-country removals since President Trump’s second term began on Jan. 20, 2025. Before then, third-country deportations were rare.
I am using the term “third-country removals” instead of “third-country deportations,” because the latter is a legal process in which a migrant is resettled in a safe third country. What is actually happening, in nearly all cases, more closely resembles chain refoulement, rendition, or kidnapping – all violations of domestic and international law. Below I have included every known instance of American immigration authorities handing over a migrant to a third country without the migrant's uncoerced consent.
These removals are listed in reverse chronological order. Some “host” countries, like Rwanda, have accepted third-country nationals multiple times; in these cases, they appear by the date of the first known instance of third-country removal.
The Trump administration has reportedly signed third-country host agreements with Paraguay and Uganda; they are not listed here since these removals do not appear to have happened yet. Similarly, the attempted third-country removal to Libya on May 7 is not listed here since it was stopped by court order.
Because the Trump administration rarely confirms third-country removals, information about them primarily comes from court filings, flight tracking, media reports and information provided by host countries. It is possible, and perhaps probable, that there are instances of third-country removals not yet known to the public.
If you notice any errors or missing information, or if you would like to leak more information about third-country removals, please email me at gbrockell at proton dot me or message me on signal at gbrockell.44.
I believe these removals are legally and morally wrong, and I hope the information gathered here will someday be useful in bringing justice to the people who committed them and the people subjected to them.
Last updated on Oct. 2, 2025
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QATAR
Date(s): Sept. 30-Oct. 1, 2025
Who: Approximately 120 Iranians. A US official told Reuters some had criminal convictions and some were undocumented, but this has not been independently verified, and US officials are known to have lied about this before.
How: From the US to Qatar via a Boeing 767 (N819AX) operated by Omni Air International to Qatar. From Qatar to Iran via a Boeing 787 (A7-BCJ) operated by Qatar Airways.
Imprisoned? Unknown. (In rare cases, countries have allowed migrants to book their own flights elsewhere instead of returning to their home countries. It is unclear if Qatar allowed this or forced them onto the flight to Iran.)
Now: The Trump administration plans to remove at least 380 more Iranians through Qatar, claiming Iran had ensured the migrants would not be harmed.
More: Reuters: US begins deporting hundreds of Iranians after rare deal with Tehran
GHANA
Date(s): Sept. 5-6, 2025; at least one other September flight
Who: On Sept. 5, 14 men from Nigeria and Gambia with credible fear orders preventing deportation to their countries of origin. A DHS official told me “some” had criminal records, but this cannot be independently verified, and the official is known to have lied before about migrants’ criminal backgrounds. Later September, up to 14 more migrants from Nigeria, Liberia, Togo and perhaps Mali, who also appear to have been asylum-seekers. At least two said they were green card holders who had completed prison sentences for fraud.
How: On Sept. 5 via a US Air Force C-17 cargo jet (03-3127) flying with its ADS-B signal turned off. In a court filing, one man said he was “straitjacketed for several hours” during the trip after asking to speak to his attorneys. Later September: Possibly a Boeing 767 (N486AX) operated by Omni Air International on Sept. 10 or a Gulfstream V (N999AH) operated by Paradigm Jet Management on Sept. 18.
Imprisoned? Yes, in an open-air prison camp near the airport.
Now: Ghana said all of the men in the first group were returned to their countries of origin, though attorneys for several of the men disputed this. The Gambian man, who fears persecution because he is bisexual, is in hiding. The second group told journalists they were driven to the border with Togo and forced to cross without their passports or other ID. As of Sept. 29, they are in hiding in Togo.
More: Rolling Stone: ICE Is Deporting People to Africa on Nearly Un-Trackable Military Flights
AP: Ghana says African immigrants deported by the US have returned home
ENCA: West Africans deported by US to Ghana dumped in Togo without papers
EGYPT
Date(s): Aug. 26, 2025
Who: Approximately 20 Russian asylum seekers, including the dissident Artyom Vovchenko.
How: From the US to Egypt via a Boeing 777 (N846AX) operated by Omni Air International. From Egypt to Russia possibly via a Boeing 737 (SU-GED) operated by Egyptair.
Imprisoned? Yes, for several hours by Egyptian authorities, who forced them onto the plane to Russia.
Now: Upon arrival in Russia, at least two people, including Vovchenko, were taken into custody and cannot be located.
More: TPM: Trump Admin Returns Russian Dissidents to Putin
NYT: He Fled Putin's War. The US Deported Him to a Russian Jail.
ESWATINI
Date(s): July 15-16, 2025
Who: Five men from Cuba, Laos, Vietnam and Yemen, plus Jamaican national Orville Etoria, who had all completed prison sentences in the US. At least three had been released into the community without incident before being detained by ICE and sent to Eswatini. DHS claimed their countries had refused to take them back, but attorneys for the men, and at least one of the countries, deny this.
How: From the US to Djibouti via a Gulfstream V (N588AT) operated by Journey Aviation. From Djibouti to Eswatini via an Air Force C-17 Globemaster (02-1107) flying with its transponder signal turned off.
Imprisoned? Yes, in solitary confinement in a maximum-security prison used for political prisoners, who have previously reported beatings and denial of food.
Now: As of Sept. 23, Etoria was repatriated to Jamaica. American and liSwati lawyers for the remaining men say they are being denied access to their clients and have been told only the US embassy can grant them access.
NYT: U.S. Deportee Sent to Africa Is Repatriated by Jamaica
SOUTH SUDAN
Date(s): May 20-21, 2025 and July 4, 2025
Who: Seven men originally from Cuba, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, Sudan and Vietnam. (An eighth man removed with this group is from South Sudan.) DHS said the men had been convicted of serious crimes in the US, had completed their sentences, and that their countries of origin had refused to accept their return. Several of the countries of origin disputed that claim. The men were held in a shipping container at a US base in Djibouti for seven weeks while their court case was heard.
How: US to Djibouti via a Gulfstream V (N588AT) operated by Journey Aviation. Djibouti to South Sudan via an unidentified US military KC-135 flying with no transponder signal.
Imprisoned? Yes. Read more about conditions in South Sudanese prisons here. Read more about their imprisonment in Djibouti here.
Now: The Supreme Court granted the Trump administration broad powers to expel migrants in early July, and the men were delivered to South Sudan soon afterward. As of early September, only one – Mexican national Jesus Munoz-Gutierrez – has been returned to his country of origin. The others appear to still be imprisoned in South Sudan.
More: It Could Happen Here podcast: Rendition by Private Jet
The Intercept: Trump Administration Expels Eight Men to War-Torn South Sudan
Al Jazeera: Mexico accepts return of man deported to South Sudan from US
UZBEKISTAN
Date(s): April 30, 2025; possibly Sept. 24, 2025
Who: In April, 131 people were removed to Uzbekistan, among them an unknown number of Kazakh and Kyrgyzs nationals with Uzbek deportees. In September, a flight bearing similar characteristics arrived in Uzbekistan; nothing is known yet about the passengers.
How: In April via a Boeing 787 (UK-78706) operated by Uzbekistan Airways; in September possibly via a Boeing 787 (UK-001) owned by the government of Uzbekistan.
Imprisoned? Unknown.
Now: The government of Uzbekistan agreed to return the Kazakh and Kyrgyz nationals to their countries under “humanitarian and legal principles” but has provided no information on if it achieved that goal. All three countries are authoritarian states with no free press.
More: Radio Free Europe: US Deports Over 100 Central Asian Nationals With Uzbekistan’s Cooperation
ICE Flight Monitor on September flight to Uzbekistan
RWANDA
Date(s): April 3-4, 2025; August 15-18, 2025
Who: Iraqi national Omar Ameen and seven unidentified migrants. Ameen came to the US with his family as a refugee and was later accused of a murder in Iraq. Though a US judge ruled Ameen could not have committed the murder and could not be deported to Iraq, the Biden administration continued with Ameen’s third-country deportation process up until Trump took over in January. The seven other people arrived in August.
How: In April likely via a Gulfstream V (N176SM) operated by Aircraft Transport Service and an additional unknown aircraft. In August, via two Gulfstream Vs (N588AT and N996GA) operated by Journey Aviation.
Imprisoned? Unknown.
Now: Ameen had many media contacts but has not been heard from publicly since his removal, suggesting he has been imprisoned. Of the second group, Rwanda told AP three wanted to return to their countries of origin, and four wanted to settle in Rwanda, but provided no information on whether they are being detained or have freedom of movement.
More: The Handbasket: US “relocates” Iraqi refugee to Rwanda via new diplomatic arrangement
AP: Rwanda says 7 deportees arrived from the US in August under agreement with Washington
BHUTAN
Date(s): Multiple times since March, exact dates unclear
Who: At least 27 stateless refugees stripped of citizenship by Bhutan in the 1990s due to their ethnicity who legally resettled in the US. All who were recently detained and removed appear to have had criminal records, ranging from traffic violations to juvenile offenses and assault, and had completed their sentences years ago. Because they are stateless and were re-expelled, I am including their removals to Bhutan as third-country removals.
How: Unclear. Because of the lack of details, I have not been able to identify the flights used for these removals. Soon after their arrivals, all appear to have been taken by Bhutanese authorities to the Indian or Nepali borders and expelled again.
Imprisoned? Yes, briefly, in Bhutan. At least four were also detained in Nepal for illegal entry.
Now: Some have returned to the same refugee camps in Nepal they left decades ago. Some are in hiding in India or Nepal, others are missing, according to family members in the US.
More: DW: Bhutanese deported from the US again face statelessness
NPR: A refugee deported to Bhutan by the U.S. is now stateless
EL SALVADOR
Date(s): March 15-16, 2025; March 31, 2025
Who: 252 Venezuelans falsely claimed to be gang members and declared “alien enemies,” along with about 30 Salvadoran deportees, including Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was deported by mistake. All of the flights appear to have violated a court order. Most of the migrants had entered the US legally; only six had been convicted of violent crimes.
How: On March 15-16 via three Airbus A320s (N278GX, N837VA, N630VA) operated by GlobalX, also known as Global Crossing Airlines. On March 31 via an unknown military aircraft.
Imprisoned? Yes, in the notorious Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT, where they were frog-marched and had their heads shaved for a perverse propaganda video.
Now: The Venezuelans were freed and repatriated in a US prisoner exchange after four months and have begun telling their stories of the horrific conditions, beatings and sexual assaults they endured at CECOT. Abrego was sent back to the US, where he was detained on specious charges and is now being threatened with third-country removal to Uganda.
More: ProPublica: Who Are the Venezuelan Immigrants Trump Sent to CECOT?
The Bulwark: How a Makeup Artist Survived the World’s Worst Prison
AP: US seeks to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Uganda, court filing shows
COSTA RICA
Date(s): Feb. 20, 2025
Who: Approximately 200 migrants, including 81 children with their families, mostly from Central Asia. Many said they had entered the US from Mexico to legally seek asylum, had been detained, and were prevented from filing their claims before their removal.
How: Via an Airbus A320 (N630VA) operated by GlobalX.
Imprisoned? Yes, in a former pencil factory. Released after a lawsuit.
Now: Local attorneys say about 90 have returned to their countries of origin, at least two dozen are seeking asylum in Costa Rica, and six escaped and cannot be located.
More: NYT: Costa Rica Tells Trump Deportees They Can Stay and Integrate, or Leave
Reuters: US plans to fund deportations from Costa Rica, document shows
PANAMA
Date(s): Feb. 12-15, 2025
Who: Approximately 300 people, including many families, mostly from Central and East Asian countries. Many said they had entered the US from Mexico to legally seek asylum, had been detained, and were prevented from filing their claims before their removal. This includes Iranian Christian families and at least one Afghan man who said he helped the US military during the war in Afghanistan.
How: Via US Air Force C-17 Globemasters (09-9210, 08-8200 twice)
Imprisoned? Yes, in a hotel and then a detention camp. Released after a lawsuit.
Now: Local attorneys say about 170 have returned to their home countries; the rest were freed from detention after a lawsuit. As of May, NYT reported about 50 remained in legal limbo and were living in a gymnasium shelter or hotel rooms provided by UNICEF.
More: NYT: Migrants Deported to Panama Ask: 'Where Am I Going to Go?'
NYT: U.S. Bill Named for Artemis Ghasemzadeh Aims to Shield Asylum Seekers
MEXICO
Date(s): Jan. 20, 2025–Now
Who: At least 6,500 people from Central and South America and the Caribbean, according to Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum.
How: Mostly on ICE flights that also include Mexican deportees; a smaller number are removed at the US-Mexico border.
Imprisoned? No.
Now: Once in Mexico, third-country nationals who want to continue to their countries of origin are offered transportation to Mexico’s southern border, according to Sheinbaum. Local aid groups are struggling to care for the ones who remain. This is a continuation of a controversial program started by President Biden.
More: WOLA: Dispatch from Mexico: Difficulties Abound for Both Deported Individuals and Service Providers
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