US deports dozens to Central African Republic in second such flight since June

WASHINGTON, United States — WASHINGTON — The United States deported dozens of people to the Central African Republic on a flight that landed in Bangui on Saturday, including an Afghan man who had previously obtained a court order preventing his removal to Afghanistan, according to the Associated Press. The man's lawyer, Alma David, said the client had been targeted by the Taliban because his brother served in the Afghan National Army alongside U.S. forces, and that another brother, a U.S.-trained pilot, had been killed. Savi Arfe, policy director of the group Human Rights First, said the flight carried 12 Afghans, 8 Iranians, and nationals of Nepal and Nicaragua. The AP reported that President Donald Trump's administration has deported thousands of people to roughly 24 third countries through agreements that are often kept secret. Immigration attorneys have said the practice creates a legal gap by sending some asylum seekers to countries where they have no prior ties. The Saturday flight was the second to the Central African Republic since June, when around 24 people were transferred, including an Iranian woman. No further details on the latest group were immediately available.