Africa: United States Accused of Exploiting Migrant Suffering With Africa Deportations

What the report says

Human Rights Watch has accused the United States of violating international law by deporting migrants to African countries where they have no personal ties, according to a report published Thursday and carried by RFI on AllAfrica. The group said the policy reflects a broader expansion of third-country deportations under President Donald Trump’s administration after his return to the White House in January 2025.

The report says more than 500 people have been sent from the US to African countries other than their own, based on US Immigration and Customs Enforcement data cited by Human Rights Watch. The organization said it interviewed 24 deportees sent to six African destinations, including Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini and South Sudan. It also said some deportees described harsh treatment during removal flights and were not informed of their destination.

Human Rights Watch argued that sending people to remote countries is intended to deter migration by making deportation seem more threatening. It also raised concerns that deporting LGBTQI+ people to countries where same-sex relations are criminalized or heavily repressed could violate the principle of non-refoulement, which bars states from sending people to places where they face serious abuse.

The article adds that the US has built agreements with countries across Africa and other regions to accept deportees, and that the terms of many of those deals remain secret. It said Burundi is the latest African country to join the arrangement, reflecting growing pressure on governments to cooperate with Washington’s migration policy.