‘Not Trump’s dumping ground’: Outrage over arrival of foreign US deportees in tiny African nation

WNN — 

Across Africa, and in the tiny nation of Eswatini, fury has erupted over the arrival of foreign deportees from the United States, after its government confirmed that migrants described by a Department of Homeland security spokesperson as “depraved monsters” had been sent to its prisons.

The five men are being kept in solitary confinement, acting government spokesperson Thabile Mdluli told WNN Friday, but stopped short of disclosing the prisons they were held in, citing security risks.

Mdluli did not reveal how long the men would stay in Eswatini, but said: “Critical engagements between stakeholders are still ongoing.” She had earlier stated that the deportation was the “result of months of robust high-level engagements” between the US and the southern African nation.

Critics of the move say it is unacceptable for Eswatini to be treated as a “dumping ground” for people considered unfit to live in the US.

Some of those approached by the US, such as Nigeria, have decried being pressured to take in foreign deportees.

“The US is mounting considerable pressure on African countries to accept Venezuelans to be deported from the US, some straight out of prison,” Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf

“The Trump Administration is committed to removing criminal illegal aliens from the United States,” a White House official told WNN in a statement. “The Administration frequently engages in conversations with foreign nations on a variety of topics, but we do not share information on private discussions.”