Migration & court file
US Deportations via Pakistan
Washington has no diplomatic relations with Afghanistan or a functioning one with Iran, so it has used Pakistan as the transfer point for detainees it cannot send home directly. That arrangement has produced two flights the administration tried to run in November 2026, a federal judge’s notice order in Washington and a second judge’s block in New York, and a refusal by Islamabad that turned the first Iranian aircraft back to Arizona. This hub follows the operation, the litigation and the diplomatic position from the filing of charges through each flight attempt.

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11 November 2026US deportation flight turns back after Pakistan declines to accept Iranian detainees
A US deportation flight carrying Iranian detainees bound for Iran turned around midair and landed back in Arizona after Pakistan declined to accept the group.
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International — Region / International — RegionUS judge blocks deportation of Afghans to Pakistan and Afghanistan
A New York federal judge has temporarily barred the US from deporting more than 150 Afghans to Afghanistan or Pakistan, days before flights were due to leave Louisiana.
International — Region / International — RegionUS plans to deport more than 150 Afghans through Pakistan, court filings show
Federal court filings show the US preparing to fly more than 150 Afghan detainees from Louisiana to Pakistan, with onward transport to Afghanistan planned as early as next week.