ICE Deported 100-Plus Iranians at Tehran's Request, Including 1 Mistaken Removal
Updated
Updated · Reason · Aug 19
ICE Deported 100-Plus Iranians at Tehran's Request, Including 1 Mistaken Removal
3 articles · Updated · Reason · Aug 19
Summary
FOIA emails show ICE worked with Iranian officials to put specific detainees on charter flights to Iran, including three people Tehran asked to add before a Sept. 29, 2025 departure.
June 19, 2025 orders from ICE leadership called deporting all removable Iranians a White House priority, even as regional airspace closures during the Israel-Iran war complicated the plan.
September 2025 records show ICE assembled detainees in Louisiana, let an Iranian diplomat interview them, and rejected some last-minute additions only for logistical reasons; one person not on the final manifest was boarded anyway.
More than 100 Iranians were ultimately deported on flights in September, December and January, and some were later questioned by Iranian secret police after arrival, according to BBC and New York Times reports.
The documents suggest a broader campaign: ICE counted 244 Iranians with final removal orders in custody and 2,578 outside custody, though a planned fourth flight became impractical after the U.S.-Israel war with Iran began on Feb. 28, 2026.