ICE Serves Third-Country Deportation Notices to Detainees for Removal to South Sudan — Latest in Pattern of Forced Transfers to Countries Detainees Have No Ties To

On May 19, 2026, DHS served deportation notices to detainees flagging removal to South Sudan as a third-country destination — the latest episode in the Trump administration's expanded use of third-country deportation agreements with nations accepting deportees who are neither citizens nor long-term residents of those countries. The Trump administration has used third-country deportation deals since mid-2025 to remove individuals to at least 21 countries — including El Salvador's CECOT prison, Uganda, Paraguay, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and now South Sudan. Courts have repeatedly intervened in third-country deportations, with lawyers arguing that removing individuals to countries with no connection to them and where they face severe danger violates the Convention Against Torture and procedural due process guarantees. The International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) and allied advocacy organizations flagged the South Sudan notices as particularly concerning given the country's ongoing civil conflict and humanitarian crisis. The development comes as Congress debates whether the $71.7B reconciliation package should include any geographic or humanitarian restrictions on removal destinations, a provision Democrats have demanded and Republicans have blocked. The administration has deported approximately 17,500 people to third countries since June 2025. A federal court previously issued a TRO to pause a South Sudan removal flight earlier in 2026, and advocates anticipated emergency litigation in response to the new notices.