US deported convicted migrants to Eswatini under secret Trump-era agreement

Migrants who had previously been convicted in United States courts are now being held in Eswatini, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, after being deported from the United States over the past several months. According to “The Deportation Project,” a collaborative investigation by Forbidden Stories and a network of 72 journalists across 15 countries, the arrivals were the result of a secret agreement reached by the Trump administration as part of its broader mass‑deportation programme. The migrants, unfamiliar with the small southern African kingdom, have been placed in detention facilities where local residents view them with suspicion, labeling them as “criminal” newcomers.

The investigation highlights how the covert arrangement bypassed standard diplomatic channels and left the deportees in a legal and social limbo. Authorities in Eswatini have not disclosed the terms of the agreement or the criteria used to select the individuals for transfer. Human‑rights groups are calling for transparency and for the migrants’ rights to be assessed under both U.S. and international law, while the U.S. government has not yet responded to inquiries about the deal. The case underscores the complexities and potential repercussions of large‑scale deportation policies when they intersect with foreign jurisdictions.