Two men deported by the United States to Equatorial Guinea have been arbitrarily arrested, their lawyers and human rights groups said, after police covered their heads with bags, beat them, and held them at gunpoint in a hotel that has been converted into a detention center. Ahmed Soliman, an Egyptian national, and Samson Birhane from Eritrea are among over 40 people who have been deported to Equatorial Guinea, a small, oil-rich nation in central Africa. Their lawyers believe the arrests were an act of retaliation for the men speaking out about the harsh conditions of their detention and the violence they experienced at the hands of police. The two men are being held at the Bamy Hotel, located on the outskirts of Malabo, the capital of Equatorial Guinea. The hotel has been repurposed as a detention facility for asylum seekers deported from the U.S. under a controversial $7.5 million agreement with the Trump administration. Earlier this year, The Associated Press gained exclusive access to the hotel, revealing the grim conditions inside. The Trump administration has deported thousands of people to nearly two dozen countries other than their own under such arrangements, often to deter immigration. While U.S. judges have generally prevented those deported to Equatorial Guinea from being sent back to their home countries, 12 people have been returned so far, including four Ethiopians earlier this month. Detainees at the Bamy Hotel have reported facing violence from authorities, who have attempted to confiscate their phones. Isabella Mosselmans, director of the Global Litigation Council, which represents the detained individuals, said, “Over the past months, we have observed escalating cases of police violence.” On July 31, masked police officers entered hotel rooms, grabbed detainees by the neck, tackled them to the ground, and threatened them with guns. Authorities pressured Soliman and Birhane to agree to return to their countries and tried to take their phones. Videos of Soliman protesting against the treatment and being held at gunpoint by a police officer have been shared internationally. Soliman and Birhane were arrested on September 11, accused of breaking a mirror. Police later returned them to the hotel with bags over their heads and beat them in front of other detainees, according to their lawyers. The men have not been contacted since authorities took them to La Luna police station. Both had lived in the U.S. for decades before being deported. Amnesty International stated that the police targeted them in retaliation for reporting the authorities’ violent threats to force them to return to their home countries. Since their arrest, the men have been held in an overcrowded police cell under inhumane conditions, unable to contact their lawyers. Immigration lawyers argue that the Trump administration uses deportations to third countries as a legal workaround to indirectly return asylum seekers to their countries of origin. Equatorial Guinea is one of at least eight African nations that have entered into such agreements with the U.S. Despite its wealth from oil resources, Equatorial Guinea is known for corruption and human rights abuses. The government has been accused of detaining, torturing, and even killing people who speak out. U.S. companies are among the country's largest foreign investors, and the military receives U.S. funding for training.