The Trump administration has resumed third-country deportations by flying five immigrant detainees—originating from Vietnam, Laos, Jamaica, Cuba, and Yemen—to Eswatini, a small country in southern Africa. According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the men had criminal records including murder and sexual assault, and were refused entry by their home countries. The move, enabled by a recent Supreme Court ruling, allows for rapid deportation without requiring host country assurances of detainee safety, prompting sharp criticism from human rights groups and local organizations in Eswatini.

U.S. Deportation Policy Faces Renewed Scrutiny

DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin described the five men as "uniquely barbaric," claiming their home countries had rejected them. She posted on social media that “this flight took individuals so uniquely barbaric that their home countries refused to take them back.”

Eswatini’s government confirmed the men were being held in local custody and would be repatriated to their countries of origin, though legal pathways for such returns remain unclear. Local women’s rights groups condemned the U.S. action, accusing Washington of “dumping” criminals on the small kingdom.

The deportation came days after the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the path for third-country deportations. A previous attempt in May to send migrants to South Sudan was delayed by litigation after the men were left in Djibouti. Now, ICE’s internal guidance allows deportations without host country consent under specific conditions and limits detainees' ability to contest removal.

ICE Guidance Sparks Legal And Ethical Questions

ICE’s updated memo states that officers are not required to ask if deportees fear persecution in their assigned destination. If such fears are voiced, screenings are to be conducted within 24 hours, but the agency retains authority to select an alternate third country.

This policy, critics argue, may violate international conventions protecting asylum seekers from refoulement and torture. Although DHS cited earlier South Sudanese assurances of humane treatment under the UN Convention Against Torture, no such guarantees were documented in Eswatini’s case.

The latest flight and policy shift have reignited debate over U.S. immigration enforcement under Donald Trump’s leadership, particularly the practice of third-country deportations to less-developed nations without robust asylum systems.