The Trump administration held talks with Iran about deporting Iranians in the midst of Operation Epic Fury, the Associated Press reported on Friday.
Court documents obtained by the AP show that the administration intended to deport Iranian nationals through a third country as recently as mid-October. The documents did not note when the Iranians would be deported, or through which country.
At least a dozen Iranians held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities were notified over the past week that they would be deported to Iran, the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund said. According to the AP and the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund, some of them were told they could be deported as soon as Sunday.
The judge in the case ordered the administration to give the court 24 hours’ notice of any finalized plans to deport the Iranians, and five days’ written notice before such a deportation is carried out.
The administration had conversations with Iranian leaders about the deportations as early as last year before the war began. The court documents show that the administration maintained contact with Iran during the war to figure out “possible avenues for removal.”
