Secret U.S. Third‑Country Deportation Deals Send Court‑Protected Asylum‑Seekers to Equatorial Guinea for Indefinite Detention
Reporting reveals a secret U.S. third‑country deportation agreement has sent at least 29 court‑protected asylum‑seekers from countries across Africa and beyond to Equatorial Guinea, where they report indefinite detention without counsel and being told there is no asylum or protection. One deportee — an East African man whose U.S. immigration judge had ruled he was protected — says he was held in a windowless Arizona room, pressured to sign “voluntary return” papers, shackled onto a flight, and advocates and legal experts warn the transfers are being used to circumvent non‑refoulement and other legal protections.
📌 Key Facts
- A secret U.S. third‑country deportation agreement has resulted in at least 29 people being sent to Equatorial Guinea from countries including Ethiopia, Eritrea, Mauritania, Angola, Congo, Chad, Georgia, Ghana and Nigeria.
- At least seven African nations have signed third‑country deportation deals with the U.S.; legal experts describe the practice as a loophole used to bypass non‑refoulement protections that bar sending people to countries where their life or freedom would be threatened.
- A 28‑year‑old East African refugee who was told by a U.S. immigration judge he was 'protected by U.S. law' and could live and work in the U.S. says he was instead held five months in a windowless Arizona room, repeatedly pressured by ICE officers to sign 'voluntary return' papers, met an alleged racist remark when he read and refused the form, and was then shackled and flown to Equatorial Guinea.
- Deportees report Equatorial Guinean authorities telling them there is 'no any asylum or any protection' in the country, pressuring them to leave and leaving many facing indefinite detention without counsel or any clear route to return to the countries they fled.
- A visiting lawyer in Equatorial Guinea was blocked from seeing most of the 29 deportees and requested anonymity because of concerns about the regime’s human‑rights record.
- Meredyth Yoon of Asian Americans Advancing Justice says the U.S. is using these transfers 'to circumvent laws that forbid sending a person to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened' and has verified key parts of the deportee’s account.
- Pope Leo XIV — described in reporting as the first American pope and a critic of former President Trump’s migrant policies — is scheduled to visit Equatorial Guinea in April, a trip that could bring additional international scrutiny to the deportations.
📊 Relevant Data
The 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act eliminated national origin quotas, leading to a shift in U.S. immigration patterns where the foreign-born population increased from 5% in 1965 to 14% by 2015, with significant growth in immigrants from Asia and Latin America, contributing to 55% of U.S. population growth between 1965 and 2015.
Fifty Years On, the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act Continues to Reshape the United States — Migration Policy Institute
U.S. asylum grant rates vary by nationality; for fiscal year 2024, East Timor had a grant rate of about 31%, while Ecuador's was 17%, with overall disparities in approvals based on country of origin.
Asylum Decision Rates by Nationality — U.S. Department of Justice
The Trump administration has signed third-country deportation agreements with at least seven African nations, including Eswatini, paying millions (e.g., $5.1 million to Eswatini) to facilitate deportations of migrants from other countries, bypassing U.S. legal protections.
Eswatini says it received more 'third country' deportees as part of US deal — The Guardian
Equatorial Guinea ranks among the most corrupt countries, with ongoing reports of government corruption and human rights abuses, including arbitrary detentions and lack of due process, as noted in 2023 human rights reports.
Equatorial Guinea - 2023 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices — U.S. Department of State
Deportations from the U.S. in 2025 were predominantly of individuals from Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras, with these nationalities comprising the majority of ICE removals, showing disparities in enforcement focus by country of origin.
📰 Source Timeline (2)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Confirms at least 29 deportees have been sent to Equatorial Guinea from countries including Ethiopia, Eritrea, Mauritania, Angola, Congo, Chad, Georgia, Ghana and Nigeria, via a secret U.S. deportation agreement.
- Names at least seven African nations that have signed third‑country deportation deals with the U.S., described by legal experts as a loophole to bypass non‑refoulement laws.
- Provides a detailed on‑the‑record account from a 28‑year‑old East African refugee whose U.S. immigration judge said he was 'protected by U.S. law' and could live and work in the U.S., but who was never released and was instead transferred, kept five months in a windowless Arizona room, pressured to sign 'voluntary return' papers, and then shackled onto a flight to Equatorial Guinea.
- Reports the deportee’s claim that ICE officers repeatedly pressed him to sign voluntary return documents and that one agent allegedly said, 'I never knew Black people could read and write' when he read the form and refused.
- Details that Equatorial Guinean authorities told deportees there is 'no any asylum or any protection in this country' and pressured them to leave, leaving them facing indefinite detention without counsel or return to the countries they fled.
- Quotes Meredyth Yoon of Asian Americans Advancing Justice saying the U.S. is using these transfers 'to circumvent laws that forbid sending a person to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened' and verifying key parts of the deportee’s story.
- Adds that a visiting lawyer in Equatorial Guinea was blocked from seeing most of the 29 deportees and requested anonymity because of the regime’s human‑rights record.
- Notes that the first American pope, Leo XIV, who has criticized Trump’s migrant policy as 'extremely disrespectful,' is scheduled to visit Equatorial Guinea in April, which could bring new international scrutiny.