Liberia has received the first twenty individuals out of a total expected of up to 1,200 deportees sent by the United States. This group arrived at Roberts International Airport, near Monrovia, marking the beginning of an agreement in which Liberia agreed to receive citizens from third countries.
These citizens cannot be legally returned to their countries of origin, often due to reasons of political persecution. According to Jerolinmek Piah, Liberia's Minister of Information, the 1,200 deportees include African citizens, as well as individuals from North America, South America, and the Caribbean.
In a press conference held on Tuesday, Natu Oswald Tweh, Liberia's Minister of Justice, stated that most of the deportees had committed immigration-related offenses and crimes. He clarified that they would be received as 'guests, free to' leave the country whenever they wish' or remain and apply for asylum.
Experts point out that through often confidential agreements, the American administration led by President Donald Trump has already transferred thousands of people to nearly twenty countries that are not their own, including ten located in Africa.
Immigration lawyers argue that the Trump administration uses these third-country deportations as a legal way to indirectly pressure asylum seekers to return to their countries of origin. In several situations, migrants are sent to nations they have never visited or where they face security risks, with no alternative but to return to the countries they fled.
This pact between Liberia and the US constitutes one of the largest deportation processes to third countries driven by the immigration repression policy promoted by the United States President.
According to Human Rights First and Refugees International, since January 2025, the Trump administration has signed immigrant transfer agreements with more than 35 nations. By the beginning of August 2026, more than 23,000 people have been deported to 26 third countries that were not their countries of origin.