More than 25,000 people have been deported from the United States to third countries since Donald Trump returned to power – often to places they have no connection to and sometimes on another continent. Hundreds have been sent to Africa, where at least 12 countries have agreed to receive them. A six-month investigation by RFI and 23 other media outlets, part of The Deportation Project coordinated by Forbidden Stories, found that some were imprisoned without a court decision or left without clear legal status or prospects – while others were later sent to countries where they risked persecution, torture or other serious harm.
Stepping onto the tarmac at Bangui airport in the Central African Republic for the first time, Nika*, a 32-year-old Iranian woman, was in shock.
