‘I Feel Kidnapped’: Latino Immigrants Say They’re in Legal Limbo After Being Deported to Country in Africa

Since last month, Yasmany Moreno de Armas has been living what he calls a “nightmare.” The 32-year-old Cuban’s new home is in the Central African Republic, a country currently classified as an extreme-risk destination for Americans due to armed conflict, violent crime and the threat of terrorism.

Ten years ago, Moreno de Armas arrived in the U.S. after fleeing Cuba. He was legally allowed into the country under a policy that permitted Cubans who reached U.S. soil to stay and pursue legal residency.

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Moreno de Armas is one of roughly 25,000 people deported to so-called third countries during the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration crackdown, according to the immigrant rights organization Human Rights First. Third-country deportations are the removal of immigrants to a foreign country where they do not hold citizenship or have personal ties.

The Immigration and Nationality Act allows the Department of Homeland Security to deport migrants to third countries when they have proven that they could be persecuted in their country of origin or if that country cannot receive them.

According to immigration lawyers and advocates, third-country removals are not new, but they are rare. In recent months, the Trump administration has ramped up third-country deportations after creating a web of formal deals with nearly three dozen countries to deport asylum seekers, refugees and migrants with criminal records with little to no warning.

Some of the new destinations include Liberia, Ghana, the Central African Republic and Sierra Leone.

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Moreno de Armas and the group of Latin American men deported to the Central African Republic told ABC News they were dismayed that the U.S. government warns its own citizens against traveling to that country. The U.S. State Department’s travel advisory warns Americans not to travel there due to risks of unrest, crime, kidnapping, landmines, health issues and terrorism.

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