The United States has completed the deportation of eight foreign nationals to South Sudan, following weeks of legal disputes and a temporary stay at a U.S. military base in Djibouti.
The group — which included men from Cuba, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, Vietnam, and South Sudan — had been removed from the U.S. in May and held under guard at the Djibouti base as their legal challenges worked their way through federal courts.
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On Friday, the men were flown to South Sudan, a country the U.S. State Department warns Americans to avoid due to armed conflict, crime, and kidnappings.
“This was a win for the rule of law, safety and security of the American people,” said Tricia McLaughlin, spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in a statement confirming the deportation.
Held in Djibouti Amid Legal Wrangling
The deportees were initially placed on a flight to South Sudan in May, but that flight was diverted to Djibouti after a federal judge ruled that they had not been given a proper chance to challenge their removal.
At the base in Djibouti, the men were held in a converted shipping container while the legal battle continued. A series of court hearings, including a last-minute appeal on Independence Day, temporarily blocked the deportations.
But on Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority ruled in favor of the Trump administration, allowing immigration officials to resume deportations to third countries—even in cases where individuals feared danger.
Court’s Final Decision Clears the Way
By Friday evening, a federal judge in Boston, whose previous rulings had halted the deportations, concluded that the Supreme Court had tied his hands. With no further legal barriers, U.S. officials proceeded with the transfer.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), all eight individuals had final orders of removal and had been convicted of violent crimes while living in the U.S.
