1A President Trump's 'Third Country Deportations,' Explained
9 snips
Mar 4, 2026 
Sarah Stillman, New Yorker writer and Yale investigative director reporting on immigration and human rights. Meredith Yoon, litigation director focused on immigration and civil rights litigation. They explain how third country deportations work. They discuss legal maneuvers used to avoid protections. They describe detainees’ experiences, payments to receiving countries, and ongoing court challenges.
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Video Call From Detainees Inside Ghana Military Camp
- Sarah Stillman received a WhatsApp video call from 11 people inside a Ghana military detention camp with an armed guard visible.
- Callers pleaded they feared being sent back to countries where they'd face persecution; many were later refouled.
Majority Of Third Country Deportees Had No Criminal Record
- Most people deported to Ghana and Equatorial Guinea did not have criminal records despite DHS claims.
- Meredith Yoon notes the administration highlighted criminal cases but the majority she tracked were noncriminal.
Detainees Often Weren't Notified Before Flights
- Detainees were often not told they were being flown to third countries and sometimes learned only midflight.
- Meredith Yoon says ICE gave false explanations like transfers or direct deportation to home countries, violating notice and objection rights.