Africans Are Being Pressured To Accept Deported Migrants-Some Aren't Happy About It

Africans Are Being Pressured To Accept Deported Migrants – Some Aren’t Happy About It Africa Recently, the first of 250 migrants who tried to move illegally to the United States were deported to the central African country of Rwanda. Rwandan officials say they accepted them because they understand their situation. “Rwanda has agreed with the United States to accept up to 250 migrants, in part because nearly every Rwandan family has experienced the hardships of displacement, and our societal values are founded on reintegration and rehabilitation,” Rwandan government spokesperson, Yolande Makolo, told Reuters. “Those approved (for resettlement) will be provided with workforce training, healthcare, and accommodation support to jumpstart their lives in Rwanda, giving them the opportunity to contribute to one of the fastest-growing economies in the world over the last decade.” Still, countries that accept migrants from the US and elsewhere are being compensated for their trouble: The program, part of President Donald Trump’s pledge to prevent illegal immigration in the US, is also an example of a booming new business. As the BBC reported, numerous developing countries worldwide have agreed to take migrants from wealthier nations that have chosen to pay others to handle those individuals who have left their homes in search of safety or better economic opportunities. For example, El Salvador has imprisoned Venezuelan citizens deported from the US. American taxpayers paid the country around $6 million for the resettlement, according to National Public Radio. The US has also expelled individuals to Eswatini and South Sudan, the latter a war-torn nation on the brink of another war. Lawyers for those individuals have complained that they have been thrown in jail in their new host countries without due process and live in dire conditions. Some are being deported even when their countries of origin are willing to take them back. For example, Jamaican national Orville Etoria was “inexplicably and illegally” sent to Eswatini when Jamaica said it would accept him back, the New York-based Legal Aid Society told the Los Angeles Times. Etoria and other men from Laos and Vietnam have been refused visitation by their local attorneys. Rwanda hasn’t disclosed how much the US has paid to accept the migrants. But the US recently paid the country $100,000 to take a single Iraqi deportee. The US isn’t alone in its offshoring. Australia is paying the tiny Oceanic nation of Nauru $267 million in a lump sum as well as $46 million annually to take migrants, the Associated Press noted. Three years ago, the United Kingdom attempted to send asylum seekers to Rwanda. The plan fizzled, however, after British courts found that it violated human rights laws. The British spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the plan. Now, Rwandan officials insist they are not required to pay the money back. British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is now thinking of new ways to offshore migrants, according to a London School of Economics blog. Meanwhile, Italy also was forced to pull back from its scheme to deport migrants to Albania for asylum processing after a court ruled it illegal on human rights grounds. Still, Europeans have succeeded in other ways: They are paying Turkey almost $7 billion to process migrants so they might enter the European Union legally, rather than attempting to cross into Greece, where many are now detained in camps. As the International Rescue Committee explained, this arrangement was part of the EU’s response to 1 million migrants seeking to enter the bloc in 2015. Most were from war-torn Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. Turkey is now forcibly sending many back to their home countries, Politico added. The EU has also created a nearly $6 billion fund to pay Libya and other African countries to hold migrants there rather than letting them take to the Mediterranean Sea to go north, the Guardian reported. Advocates, however, say the conditions are dire for the migrants who get stuck in North Africa. For example, last year, a journalist group forced the EU to admit that its money was allowing African countries to “dump” migrants in the remote parts of the Sahara. Meanwhile, some Africans are not happy with the offshoring plans, saying that the US and other countries are attempting to dump their problems onto African nations and not taking no for an answer. In June, the New York Times reported that the Trump administration had pressured 58 countries, many in Africa, to accept deportees. This “intense diplomatic campaign” targeted nations facing US travel bans, visa restrictions or tariffs, raising concerns that some leaders may comply regardless of whether it serves their country’s interests. The US’ approach reflects a troubling perception of Africa as a “dumping ground” for foreign nationals convicted of violent crimes, said Al Jazeera, creating anger on the continent. Analyst Chris Ogunmodede told the news outlet that countries like South Sudan and Eswatini, with no geopolitical heft, can easily be bullied into compliance by larger nations. Analysts say this campaign has deep repercussions for Africa. “The deportations have deepened public distrust in host country governments. Secrecy surrounding the deals exacerbates instability in both (Eswatini and South Sudan), which are already burdened by violence, instability, and crackdowns on pro-democracy movements,” wrote the Institute for Security Studies. “Many citizens believe the US has used aid and trade to pressure South Sudan and Eswatini into compliance and gain favor with the Trump administration, triggering fears over what was promised in exchange.” At least one country has said no. Regional heavyweight Nigeria was asked by the US to take Venezuelan deportees, some straight out of prison, according to Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar. The country turned down the request. “The US is mounting considerable pressure on African countries to accept (deportees),” he said, speaking on a Nigerian talk show. “For crying out loud, we already have 230 million people, the very same people that would castigate us if we accepted (the deportees).” Meanwhile, he added, “We have enough problems of our own.”

South Africa: 7 Chinese Sentenced To 20 Years Each For Trafficking and Forced Labor

7 Chinese sentenced to 20 years each for trafficking and forced labor in South Africa By Mogomotsi Magome, 13 hours ago South Africa-Chinese-Trafficking Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. A court in Johannesburg sentenced seven Chinese nationals on Wednesday to terms of 20 years in prison each for trafficking people from Malawi and forcing them to work at a factory in South Africa. The group was convicted on Feb. 25 of trafficking 91 undocumented Malawian nationals from 2017 to 2019 to work at a cotton fabric factory in Village Deep, an industrial area in the south of Johannesburg. The Chinese nationals had been arrested on Nov. 12, 2019 when police raided the factory and found the Malawians confined under inhumane conditions with armed guards controlling their movements. The factory had a high wall and razor fence. Court records listed the defendants as Shu-Uei Tsao, 42; Biao Ma, 50; Hui Chen, 50; Quin Li, 56; Zhou Jiaquing, 46; Junying Dai, 58; and Zhilian Zhang, 51. They all were sentenced in Gauteng South Division Court to 20 years after being convicted of human trafficking and breaking the country’s labor and immigration laws. Prosecutors had sought life sentences. They said the victims were forced to work 11-hour shifts, seven days a week, without proper training or safety equipment. Many had previously worked at Chinese-owned factories in Malawi, and were recruited to go to South Africa under false pretenses, the prosecutors said. During the trial, the victims described harsh conditions, including being transported in windowless trucks to the factory, where they were not allowed to leave. They were also forced to work on holidays and were prohibited from bringing in outside food. Personal communication was banned, and they were made to operate defective machines without protective gear, leading to accidents, they said.

Cameroon: Two US Citizens Indicted for Bombings and Kidnappings Through Separatist Militia Operations

DOJ: Two U.S. citizens used Minnesota as base for overseas kidnappings and bombings Minnesota residents accused of funding bombings and kidnappings through separatist militia operations Alexandra Koch By Alexandra Koch Fox News Published September 6, 2025 3:42pm EDT Facebook Twitter Flipboard Comments Print Email close Grapevine: Will Cameroon be evicted from DC embassy? NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles! Listen to this article 3 min A federal grand jury in Minnesota has indicted two naturalized U.S. citizens from the Republic of Cameroon, alleging they orchestrated kidnappings, bombings and killings in their native country. Benedict Nwana Kuah, 51, and Pascal Kikishy Wongbi, 52, were arrested Friday morning in the District of Minnesota and face additional charges of conspiracy to kill, kidnap, maim and injure persons abroad, conspiracy to provide material support or resources and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, according to the Department of Justice. Kuah is also charged with three counts of providing material support or resources, conspiracy to commit hostage-taking and conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction outside the U.S. The men made their initial appearances and are being held in custody pending detention hearings scheduled for Sept. 10 and Sept. 11. A Cameroon trooper, right, stands next to an ambulance that was used to carry victims of a train that crashed on Friday in Eseka, Cameroon, Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016. Rescue workers dug through the rubble Saturday in search of more injured and dead after a train traveling between two major cities in Cameroon derailed in Eseka, killing scores of people according to rescue workers and hospital staff. The alleged attacks happened in Cameroon, a country in Central Africa. (The Associated Press) SELF-PROCLAIMED 'APOSTLE' WHO CLAIMS TO BE JESUS' BEST FRIEND ARRESTED IN FORCED LABOR SCHEME Kuah and Wongbi allegedly held leadership roles in the Ambazonia Defense Forces (ADF), a separatist militia seeking to create an independent country in Cameroon, according to the indictment. The pair allegedly used their positions to raise money and finance the purchase of weapons and directed co-conspirators in Cameroon to kidnap, bomb and kill civilians, government officials and members of the security forces to intimidate civilians and coerce the Cameroonian government into recognizing their legitimacy. Starting in 2017, the two men allegedly sent thousands of dollars to co-conspirators in Cameroon for weapons and explosives, directing attacks that killed, injured or kidnapped civilians, according to the indictment. In 2022, fighters kidnapped a government official and released propaganda videos. In this photo taken on Thursday, Feb. 19, 2015, Cameroon soldiers stand guard at a lookout post as they take part in operations against the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram near the village of Mabass, Cameroon. Cameroon officials say prisons are overcrowded with suspected Islamic extremists whose insurgency has spilled from Nigeria. The pair allegedly sent thousands of dollars to co-conspirators in Cameroon for weapons and explosives and directed attacks that left civilians dead, injured or taken hostage. (

Kenya Stops Exhumations At Cult Site After Finding Remains

Kenya Stops Exhumations at Cult Site After Finding Remains Kenya Authorities in Kenya have suspended exhumations at a suspected doomsday cult site after discovering new remains near where hundreds of bodies linked to a cult were found two years ago, the Associated Press reported. The latest exhumations at Chakama Ranch in Kilifi County, in southeastern Kenya, uncovered 34 new bodies and more than 100 body parts, Africanews noted. Police Inspector General Douglas Kanja said a multi-agency team was investigating the circumstances that led to the deaths. Eleven suspects were arrested a month ago after a woman reported the deaths of her children. The investigation is ongoing. Authorities are analyzing money transfers to the suspects’ phones from individuals they suspect of funding the operation. Police said the cult members rented homes in the town of Malindi, on Kenya’s western coast, before moving to the remote Chakama Ranch area, where they built mud huts next to where the shallow graves were found. This marks the second instance where bodies have been uncovered in the area, which has been linked to cult activities. Two years ago, the remains of more than 400 followers of a doomsday cult were found near preacher Paul Mackenzie’s Good News International Church in the Shakahola area, about 1.2 miles from where the new remains were found. Mackenzie is in custody on murder charges. The discovery sent shockwaves across Kenya. According to the police, the new remains were found during the regrouping of the cult by former members. The number of missing remains is unclear.

Eswatini Is Accepting US Deportees

In this week’s Analysing Africa newsletter John McDermott, The Economist’s Chief Africa correspondent, wrote about how the continent is handling the deportees that America is sending. Here is an abridged version. For more reporting on and analysis of Africa, sign up to the newsletter. I first heard of the Matsapha Correctional Complex, a prison in Eswatini, when two MPs were jailed on what human-rights groups say are spurious charges. As both were arrested for participating in and supporting pro-democracy protests, their real offence may have been to challenge the rule of King Mswati III, Africa’s fifth-longest-serving leader. His royal court includes at least 11 wives; courtiers drive Rolls Royces while most of his 1.2m subjects live in poverty. In Matsapha at least one of the MPs is said to have been beaten and deprived of food and medical care. The prison is in the news again because it houses five migrants sent by America as part of Donald Trump’s increasingly theatrical and aggressive deportation policy. The autocracy, once known as Swaziland, is one of four African countries, alongside South Sudan, Uganda and Rwanda, that have recently agreed to take deportees. I suspect the appeal to Mr Trump is twofold. First, African deportation deals fire up those in the MAGA base who enjoy performative cruelty towards migrants. Second, they are a deterrent—migrants would rather be sent home than to an African country they know nothing about. But what is in it for African countries? For Eswatini and South Sudan, neither of which has much to offer the world’s most powerful country, it is ad hoc deal-making. Eswatini wants cash (more than $10m to take more than 150 deportees, according to the New York Times) and exemption from high tariffs on sugar exports. South Sudan wants to undo a decision by America in April to bar its citizens from the country and revoke visas that have already been issued. Politicians see taking deportees as a way of getting back into Mr Trump’s good books. And both Rwanda and Uganda have a history of striking deals with larger powers to take in unwanted migrants. African countries’ eagerness to help solve Mr Trump’s migration problems underlines the narrowing of America’s relationship with the continent. For America the policy can be summed up by three Ms: mercantilism, minerals and migrants. African leaders can benefit from appearing to help America in these areas. But I still find it sad that, whereas American diplomats once decried, however inconsistently, the conditions in African prisons, the very grimness of these places is now part of their appeal.

Mocambique: Jihadists Attack Resource Development Projects

Bloody Rich: Mozambique Sees Resurgence of Militant Attacks As It Tries To Develop Its Resources Mozambique Fifty years after Mozambique gained independence from Portugal, the southeast African country is struggling to contain surging jihadist violence in its northern coastal Cabo Delgado province. In August, Islamic State-affiliated militants known as al-Shabaab attacked eight districts in Cabo Delgado. Seeking to install their harsh version of Sharia law and seize the region’s natural gas reserves and ruby mines, the militants have attacked villages, fought Mozambican troops, and set up roadblocks on back roads to extort resources from travelers. Christian drivers stopped at these roadblocks must pay tolls to pass or face capture. The United States-based Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) warned that the Islamic State fighters were also beheading Christians and burning down churches and schools, calling the tragic situation a “silent genocide.” “What we see in Africa today is a kind of silent genocide or silent, brutal, savage war that is occurring in the shadows and all too often ignored by the international community,” Alberto Miguel Fernandez of MEMRI told Fox News. “That jihadist groups are in a position to take over not one, not two, but several countries in Africa – take over the whole country or most of several countries – is dangerous.” Mozambique has been battling the Islamist insurgents in Cabo Delgado since 2017, struggling to contain the violence, while relying on support from troops sent by Rwanda, South Africa, and other regional partners. In 2020, the insurgents initiated a wave of attacks in which they beheaded dozens of people, including children. Now, observers say there has been a resurgence of attacks and child kidnappings this year, which have been overshadowed by Mozambique’s deadly and long-running post-election protests, recent cyclones, and US cuts to foreign aid.  More than 95,000 people have been displaced due to the violence, the United Nations said. UN officials also warned that the militants were preventing vital humanitarian aid for those who remain. More than 6,000 people have died in the region since 2017. Around a third were civilians. The political dominance of the Liberation Front of Mozambique (FRELIMO), which fought for independence and has run the country since 1975, is one reason why the jihadist problem as well as other issues – poor infrastructure, scant civil institutions, ethnic tensions, extreme inequality and endemic poverty despite tremendous natural resources – persist in the country, argued the French Institute for International and Strategic Affairs. “The persistence of protests and the country’s economic paralysis underscore a revolt that extends beyond electoral disputes,” it wrote. “The opposition has evolved into a broader challenge against a one-party system tainted by repeated corruption scandals in recent years, whose promises of development have left behind a particularly vulnerable population.” When President Daniel Chapo won office last year, defeating Venâncio Mondlane of the Optimist Party for the Development of Mozambique, a party that split off from FRELIMO, for example, voters eager for change took to the streets to protest for months, accusing Chapo of fraud. The government responded with a harsh crackdown, resulting in more than 300 deaths in the demonstrations. In July, the government charged Mondlane with incitement to terrorism. Among the government’s failings over the years is the failure to bring together different parties to figure out how to address the root causes of the jihadism in Cabo Delgado, noted the Center for Strategic Studies. Compensating those who have suffered violence, offering amnesty to those who have run afoul of government officials for expressing their dissident political opinions, and funding more youth initiatives would help defuse the instability in the region, Center researchers argued. Chapo hopes money can help. He recently announced a $40 million, World Bank-supported fund to finance small and medium businesses, reported Al Jazeera. More importantly, Qatar’s Al Mansour Holding recently signed a $20 billion deal to fund energy and agriculture projects, Reuters wrote. But the insurgents are likely not to be defeated that easily, say analysts. As of June, insurgents have kidnapped more than 120 children from the Cabo Delgado province, to ensure their mission goes on: Witnesses told the Associated Press that children abducted from towns and villages have been used as fighters in subsequent attacks. “When al-Shabab fighters enter or attack certain areas, they tend to abduct children,” Augusta Iaquite, coordinator at the Association of Women in Legal Careers in Cabo Delgado, told Human Rights Watch. “They take them to train them and later turn them into their own fighters.” 

Burkina Faso Outlaws Homosexuality

Burkina Faso Outlaws Homosexuality Burkina Faso Burkina Faso’s transitional junta parliament passed a law criminalizing homosexuality and instituting prison sentences of up to five years as punishment this week, the latest African country to impose anti-gay legislation, France 24 reported. The law was unanimously adopted Monday by 71 unelected members of the transitional parliament, in power following two coups in 2022. Justice Minister Edasso Rodrigue Bayala told national broadcaster RTB that homosexual acts are “bizarre behavior” and added that foreign nationals would be deported under the law, Africanews wrote. Officials presented the law, which is part of a broader family and citizenship legislation reform, as a recognition of “marriage and family values,” adding that it will be “popularized through an awareness campaign.” Homosexuality is banned in around 30 African countries, but it was not deemed a criminal act in Burkina Faso before the military seized power through coups they said were meant to stabilize the West African country amid a worsening security crisis. Rights groups, however, have criticized the junta for undermining human rights with widespread arrests and military conscription of critics. Mali, an ally of Burkina Faso and also led by a military government, passed a law banning homosexuality in November 2024. Ghana and Uganda have also recently imposed stricter anti-homosexuality laws. In Uganda, “aggravated homosexuality” is a capital offence, while consensual same-sex relations can be punished with a life sentence. Analysts say that while these laws are widely criticized abroad, they are often popular in African countries where the public is often critical of homosexuality, framing it as a behavior imported from abroad.