ICE Coordinated With Iran to Deport 100 Immigrants

Emails obtained by the National Iranian American Council reveal that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) coordinated with the Iranian government to deport more than 100 Iranians between September 2025 and January 2026. The documents indicate that Iranian officials influenced deportation lists and requested amendments to flight manifests, which ICE officials granted. These operations were designated a White House priority by the Trump administration and continued even during a 12-day military conflict between the U.S., Israel, and Iran in June 2025.

Former acting ICE director Todd Lyons labeled the repatriations a priority during the conflict, while ICE head of removal operations Marcos Charles directed staff to develop a plan to proceed despite the hostilities. The deportation flights were chartered through Doha, Qatar, with occasional facilitation by Qatari officials.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security defended the operations as lawful removals of foreign agents and terrorists. However, human rights activists and a lawsuit filed in Washington, D.C., allege that ICE illegally shared confidential asylum data with Iranian authorities and deported asylum-seekers against their will. The Department of Homeland Security has denied these allegations, stating that all asylum-seekers receive due process.