UN experts call for halt to Trump policy of migrant deportations to third countries

GENEVA: Dozens of United Nations human rights experts have written a letter to the United States government, urging an immediate cessation of policies that they argue are endangering migrants by deporting them to third countries. The Trump administration has engaged in multiple agreements with African governments to accept migrants who cannot be legally returned to their home nations.

Many of those sent to these "third-country" destinations have previously received protection from US judges, as they would face abuse if repatriated. According to the experts, at least 23,000 individuals have already been relocated to 29 nations and territories. Rights organizations have expressed concerns over the heightened risk of abuse in some of these countries, such as Equatorial Guinea, where police have been known to brandish firearms against migrants, and the Central African Republic, which is currently housing Iranian deportees.

The letter emphasizes that the harmful effects of this US government program are no longer speculative and are already triggering a series of human rights violations, particularly affecting children, women, individuals with disabilities, trafficking victims, LGBTQ+ persons, stateless individuals, and other extremely vulnerable populations.

The UN experts delivered their communication to the US diplomatic mission in Geneva, which has yet to respond to a request for comment. The United States has defended the third-country arrangements as lawful, asserting that deportations adhere to US immigration law. President Donald Trump recently requested the US Supreme Court to uphold the policy after lower courts ruled it unlawful.

The UN experts also addressed their letter to the governments of 35 countries and territories that have signed agreements with Washington to accept deported individuals. UN experts, appointed by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council, are responsible for monitoring and documenting specific human rights crises but operate independently from the organization.