Key facts
- Five migrants who resisted deportation to Liberia were instead flown to Equatorial Guinea.
- The Trump administration is using Equatorial Guinea to remove migrants it cannot send home.
- The U.S. has a deal to send up to 1,200 third-country deportees to Liberia.
- Liberia announced an agreement to receive deportees, with the first group of 20 expected.
- Only 15 deportees disembarked in Liberia; five refused and were rerouted.
- The five migrants included three Cuban men, one Brazilian man, and one Cameroonian woman.
Five migrants who resisted deportation to Liberia were instead flown to Equatorial Guinea, a country the Trump administration is using to remove individuals it cannot legally send home, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The incident marks an early challenge for Washington's plan to send up to 1,200 third-country deportees to Liberia, a deal criticized by immigrant rights advocates.
These deportees typically have legal protection against repatriation to their home countries due to risks of torture or abuse. Liberia had announced an agreement to receive deportees, with the first group of 20 expected. However, only 15 disembarked in Monrovia, as at least five individuals—three Cuban men, one Brazilian man, and one Cameroonian woman—refused to leave the plane.
Instead of returning them to the U.S. as they were told, the plane diverted to Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, where the five were forced to disembark. Liberia's information ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
The five are now held with over 30 other migrants previously sent to Equatorial Guinea under a similar agreement. Human rights groups have denounced these deals, citing concerns that deportees are ultimately repatriated and reporting grim conditions at the Malabo facility, including inadequate medical care and denial of legal assistance.
The State Department reiterated its commitment to border security, while a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson stated that all migrants were deported to a safe third country.