Migrants deported from the US arrive in Uganda - JURIST - News

## Summary
News CBP Photography , Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons At least eight migrants deported from the US arrived in Uganda on Wednesday. The Ugandan foreign ministry admitted to accepting the deportees on Friday, only after widespread media coverage following a statement released by the Ugandan Law Society (ULS). The twelve were scheduled to arrive aboard a privately-owned aircraft without the engagement of state institutions like the Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control, the Parliament of Uganda, or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to the ULS. The deportees who arrived in Uganda are African, but not Ugandan, according to the statement by the Foreign Ministry.

## Article Content
News
CBP Photography
, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
At least eight migrants deported from the US
arrived
in Uganda on Wednesday. The Ugandan foreign ministry admitted to accepting the deportees on Friday, only after widespread media coverage following a statement released by the Ugandan Law Society (ULS).
On Thursday, the ULS and the East Africa Law Society released a
joint statement
announcing that 12 people from the US were about to be forcibly removed from the US and “dumped” in Uganda. The twelve were scheduled to arrive aboard a privately-owned aircraft without the engagement of state institutions like the Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control, the Parliament of Uganda, or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to the ULS. Finally, no policy document or legislation was presented to manage the procedure for the transfer of people from the US to Uganda, according to the two law societies.
The deportees who arrived in Uganda are African, but not Ugandan, according to the statement by the Foreign Ministry. The Foreign Ministry accepted the migrants pursuant to the
Agreement for Cooperation in the Examination of Protection Requests
signed in July 2025 between the US and Uganda. This Safe Third Country agreement permits nationals from other countries in Africa to be sent to Uganda in alignment with the principles of non-refoulement, which means that no person may be sent back to a country where they would face torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. Article 4 of the agreement stipulates that operating procedures will be drafted to implement the agreement. It is not clear if those procedures have been drafted.
“Third Country Deportations” like this are permitted under US law following litigation, which brought the matter to the
US Supreme Court
in June 2025. This deportation agreement is similar to the one between the US and El Salvador. In May 2025,
hundreds
of Salvadorans and Venezuelans were deported pursuant to that agreement. In September, five migrants aboard a similar flight were allegedly
held in strait jackets
for 16 hours following their capture by ICE and subsequent flight to Ghana.
It is unclear if the eight people whom the Ugandan foreign ministry announced arrived on Wednesday are the same as the dozen the UBA alleges were about to arrive on Thursday. The two law societies pledge to fight the “dehumanising” deportation agreement in court.

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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
N/A

### Areas for Consideration
- It is unclear if the eight people whom the Ugandan foreign ministry announced arrived on Wednesday are the same as the dozen the UBA alleges were about to arrive on Thursday.

### Implications
- Finally, no policy document or legislation was presented to manage the procedure for the transfer of people from the US to Uganda, according to the two law societies.
- This Safe Third Country agreement permits nationals from other countries in Africa to be sent to Uganda in alignment with the principles of non-refoulement, which means that no person may be sent back to a country where they would face torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
- Article 4 of the agreement stipulates that operating procedures will be drafted to implement the agreement.
- In May 2025, hundreds of Salvadorans and Venezuelans were deported pursuant to that agreement.

### Expert Commentary
This article covers uganda, agreement, foreign topics. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 389.