Trump Administration Ramps Up Third-Country Deportations of Cubans and Afghans
- The Trump administration has increased the use of "third country" deportations, sending more than 100 individuals, including Afghan and Cuban nationals, to African nations on September 1, 2026.
- government coordinates with third-party nations to accept deportees who cannot be immediately returned to their home countries.
- The group included Afghan nationals, who often face significant barriers to repatriation due to the political situation in Kabul, and Cuban nationals.
The Trump administration has increased the use of “third country” deportations, sending more than 100 individuals, including Afghan and Cuban nationals, to African nations on September 1, 2026. This tactic involves removing noncitizens to countries other than their country of origin or legal residence, according to reporting on the flights’ arrival in Africa.
U.S. Third Country Deportation Process
Under this strategy, the U.S. government coordinates with third-party nations to accept deportees who cannot be immediately returned to their home countries. This occurs when the home country refuses to accept its citizens or when diplomatic tensions prevent direct repatriation. In the most recent operation, officials transferred a group of over 100 people to Africa, a move that bypasses the standard process of returning individuals to their native states.
The group included Afghan nationals, who often face significant barriers to repatriation due to the political situation in Kabul, and Cuban nationals. By utilizing third-country agreements, the administration avoids the legal and diplomatic stalemates associated with direct returns to these specific regions.
Impact on Receiving African Nations
The arrival of these deportees in Africa marks a ramp-up in a policy that shifts the burden of migrant processing and residency to third-party states. While the specific agreements between the U.S. and the receiving African governments remain largely confidential, the operation requires the host country to agree to accept individuals who may have no prior connection to that territory.
This approach mirrors previous international migration models where developed nations pay or provide aid to third countries in exchange for hosting asylum seekers or deportees. For the individuals involved, this means being relocated to a region where they may lack familial ties, linguistic commonality, or legal standing.
Legal and Diplomatic Context of Removals
The use of third-country removals is often a response to “refusal of travel documents.” When a home country refuses to issue the necessary paperwork for a deportee to enter, the U.S. government typically holds the individual in detention. The third-country tactic provides an alternative to prolonged detention by relocating the individual to a country willing to accept them.
For Afghan nationals, the complexity is heightened by the lack of formal diplomatic relations between the U.S. and the current governing authority in Afghanistan. For Cubans, the process is often tied to the fluctuating diplomatic status and travel agreements between Washington and Havana.