Investigation maps 25,000 US deportations to third countries
A France 24 and Forbidden Stories investigation says most deportees were sent to Mexico, while thousands were flown to countries they had not previously visited.
A journalistic investigation involving 72 reporters has documented more than 25,000 deportations by the Trump administration to countries other than the migrants’ countries of origin, according to France 24 and Forbidden Stories.
Most of those deported were reportedly sent by land to Mexico. The investigation says about 20,000 non-Mexican nationals were transferred across the US–Mexico border, including people who had not previously visited Mexico.
By 31 August 2026, the investigation had identified at least 5,447 people from 89 nationalities who were flown to 28 countries under alleged arrangements with governments in Africa and Latin America. The available material does not set out the full methodology behind the wider 25,000 figure or the precise legal basis for the transfers.
Sofía Álvarez Jurado, one of the journalists involved, described cases in which migrants were allegedly forced across the border into Mexico and what happened after their arrival.
Non-government organisations and lawyers have reported alleged arbitrary detention and degrading treatment in some cases, including alleged abuse in El Salvador. Human rights groups have also warned of possible “chain refoulement”, in which people transferred to a third country are later sent to the country they originally fled.
The material available from the investigation does not include responses from the US, Mexican or other relevant governments.
