Nika, a 32-year-old Iranian woman, was deported from the United States to the Central African Republic (CAR) after being granted legal protections and released from immigration detention. Just two weeks later, she was rearrested and sent on a flight to CAR, a country she had never heard of. The U.S. Department of State warns against travel to CAR due to its dangerous conditions. Nika is one of more than 25,000 people deported by the Trump administration to countries not their own, with over 20,000 sent to Mexico and more than 5,000 to countries in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Central Asia. Human rights lawyers describe these so-called third-country national arrangements as a “show of force” by the U.S. intended to deter migrants and asylum seekers from entering the country. People from Peru and Colombia have been sent to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and on August 20, four Cubans, a Brazilian, and a Cameroonian refused to disembark in Liberia and were sent to Equatorial Guinea instead. The Guardian, in collaboration with 23 other media organizations, has tracked more than 100 flights that have carried migrants and asylum seekers to 28 different countries. The pace of flights has increased, with a record 16 flights carrying people to 13 different countries in August. A U.S. federal appeals court ruled that third-country removals were unlawful, arguing they violated due process. Human rights lawyers suggested this should immediately halt third-country deportation flights. The government is expected to appeal the ruling and continue its policy. A state department spokesperson stated that implementing the Trump administration’s immigration policies is a “top priority” and that the U.S. government will use all legal means to remove those with no right to remain in the country. Documents obtained by the Washington Post show that a majority of the 35 countries that have signed deals with the U.S. have stated they will not accept migrants with violent criminal records. The people forced onto planes include those who spent most of their lives in the U.S., parents detained on the school run, and adult children of elderly relatives who depend on them for care. Many are people whose fear of returning home was deemed so credible that immigration judges barred their removal from the U.S. Nika had been granted “withholding of removal,” a protection for individuals who may face severe harm in their country of origin but are ineligible for asylum. Her lawyer, Sahar Jalili, described the circumstances surrounding Nika’s rearrest as cruel. Nika was arrested during a routine check-in and taken to a detention facility, where she was later sent on a flight to CAR. Jalili said she begged ICE officers for two more days before the flight departed. Rabbiatu Kuyateh, 58, was deported to Sierra Leone from the U.S. via Ghana. She was a nurse who spent most of her life in the U.S. and cared for American coronavirus patients during the pandemic. She was terrified of being returned to her native country and was dragged into a van by her hair. The footage of her deportation spread on social media, angering Ghanaian authorities, who sent troops to a remote military camp where she and others were detained. One woman attempted suicide by drinking bleach due to the fear of being returned to her native country. The Trump administration has remade institutions intended to protect migrants who fled persecution. Immigration lawyer Alma David described the policy as an attempt to undermine the concept of asylum and refugee protection. The policy is being led by Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff, who has pushed for key appointments inside the state department to overrule other foreign policy objectives in service of his agenda. Christian Ehrhardt, a career state department official, has helped secure at least 13 third-country deportation agreements in Africa. The Trump administration has pledged at least $410 million to secure agreements with 38 different countries, almost a third of them in Africa. Internal records show the U.S. has promised $30 million to Cameroon in return for accepting 1,000 migrants and $75 million to the DRC in return for accepting 2,000 migrants. The arrangements differ from country to country, with some countries accepting people with violent criminal histories and others refusing to take anyone with a record of violence or other serious crimes. The U.S. government has accelerated its third-country deportations, with CAR being one of 13 host countries where the International Organization for Migration (IOM) provides support to deported migrants. The IOM provides food, lodgings, and psychological counsel upon arrival. However, the potential for a negative perception of its involvement in the programme is something the IOM has grappled with. People who have been returned to their countries of origin describe a life lived in the shadows. Kuyateh left Sierra Leone within days of being sent back and described a life of fear and loneliness. Annan, a gay man who fled Ghana after being outed by his family, was terrified when he returned to Accra and now lives in an abandoned building with no electricity or running water. In Los Angeles, Jalili is getting more calls about clients bound for deportation flights. Immigration lawyers describe the scale of efforts to obstruct those opposing the Trump administration’s drive to quash all types of irregular migration as unprecedented. Avenues of accountability have largely been shut, and the cost of filing a case has risen steeply.