Miami
UN Experts Question United States Deportations to Third Countries
Independent rapporteurs warned that the agreements promoted by Washington raise the risk of torture, trafficking, arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance. They also said these practices may violate the principle of non-refoulement.
More than 20 independent experts linked to the UN Human Rights Council warned on Monday that deportations carried out by the United States to dozens of third countries are generating a chain of possible human rights violations.
According to the experts, since Donald Trump took office in January 2025, Washington has signed agreements with more than 35 developing countries to receive migrants who cannot legally be sent to their countries of origin. The countries mentioned include Burundi, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Libya and South Sudan.
The rapporteurs said these arrangements increase the risk of torture, ill-treatment and enforced disappearance, as well as opening the door to arbitrary detention, slavery and trafficking. They also said that expulsions to countries with which deported people have no ties can worsen the conditions that led them to flee to the United States.
The experts stressed that among the most exposed groups are children, women, people with disabilities, victims of trafficking, LGBT people, human rights defenders and stateless people. They also warned that, in cases of particular vulnerability, the consequences can be fatal.
According to those specialists, at least 23,000 people from third countries have already been deported under this scheme. France 24 reported that an investigation published last week by Forbidden Stories and an international consortium of journalists, with the participation of reporters from that outlet, put the figure above 25,000 by the end of August.
The experts said they have already notified the United States and the other governments involved. They also noted that many of the receiving countries lack the infrastructure to process asylum requests, shelter facilities, adequate medical services or sustainable reintegration alternatives. For that reason, they called for the immediate suspension of these agreements and warned that cooperation between states does not eliminate responsibility for possible violations of the principle of non-refoulement and other international obligations.
Sources
About this note. Written by El Notero with assistance from artificial intelligence, based on what was published by the cited outlet. El Notero did not do its own reporting on this event.
