Eight migrants originally slated for deportation to South Sudan are now confined in a converted shipping container on a US naval base in Djibouti, under conditions described as dangerous and inhumane, according to new court filings from the Trump administration.

The migrants, who come from countries including Cuba and Vietnam, were removed from a deportation flight after a federal judge in Boston ruled that sending them to South Sudan violated a court order. The administration had attempted to rapidly deport them to a third country one they had no connection to sparking legal and humanitarian concerns.

Now held at Camp Lemonnier, a US military base in East Africa, the men are reportedly enduring daily temperatures above 100°F (38°C), exposure to toxic smoke from nearby burn pits, and the threat of rocket attacks from Yemeni-based terrorist groups. Medical care is limited, medications are running low, and ICE officers themselves are suffering due to poor air quality and incomplete anti-malarial treatments, according to the documents.

The Biden administration has appealed to the Supreme Court, seeking to revive the Trump-era policy of swiftly deporting migrants with criminal convictions to third countries, even when those destinations may pose significant risks.

US District Judge Brian E. Murphy, who blocked the deportations, argued the men must have a legitimate chance to express fears of persecution or harm if sent to South Sudan.

Advocates say the migrants have still not been able to consult with their lawyers, although some relatives managed brief conversations this week.

Robyn Barnard of Human Rights First, speaking at a congressional hearing on Friday, called the situation “a humanitarian crisis” and urged lawmakers to take action. “We have individuals trapped in brutal conditions, caught in a legal limbo,” she said.

The case underscores the human toll of the administration’s broader immigration crackdown and its aggressive push to fulfill mass deportation pledges, even amid court orders and international human rights concerns.

(AriseNews TV)