Group challenges US-Ghana deportation deal in court
A civil rights group has filed a lawsuit accusing the Trump administration of unlawfully deporting migrants through Ghana as a “transit hub” to circumvent protections granted by American immigration judges.
The complaint, filed in the US District Court for the District of Columbia by Asian Americans Advancing Justice, alleges that non-citizens who had been granted protection from deportation were secretly flown to Ghana and then expelled to their countries of origin, despite fears they would face persecution or torture.
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“Defendants know that they may not, consistent with US immigration law, directly deport non-citizens to countries from which they have been granted fear-based protection. As an end-run around this prohibition, Defendants have enlisted the government of Ghana to do their dirty work,” the suit stated.
According to court filings, five plaintiffs – nationals of Nigeria and The Gambia – were removed from detention in Louisiana on September 5 and placed on a US military cargo plane. Some were held in straitjackets for the 16-hour journey. None were told their destination until hours into the flight.
Upon arrival in Accra, they were transferred to what the suit described as “squalid conditions” at a remote open-air detention camp known as Dema Camp, surrounded by armed guards.
Plaintiffs said they were not given the chance to raise fears of persecution in Ghana, which was never designated as a removal country during their proceedings.
One plaintiff, identified as K.S., had been granted protection under the UN Convention Against Torture because of his sexuality.
Despite this, he was deported from Ghana to The Gambia on 10 September, where he is now “in hiding for fear of his life.” Four others – D.A., T.L., I.O. and D.S. – remain detained in Ghana and have been told they will be removed to their home countries.
President John Dramani Mahama confirmed this week that Ghana had accepted 14 deportees under a deal with Washington, stressing that the West African country was only a temporary transit point.
The plaintiffs argue that their removal violates the Immigration and Nationality Act, the Convention Against Torture, and due process rights under the Fifth Amendment. They are asking Judge Tanya Chutkan to order their immediate return to the United States and block further removals.
The lawsuit names Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons, Attorney General Pamela Bondi and Secretary of State Marco Rubio as defendants.
See the lawsuit below;
