MBABANE, Eswatini (AFP): A Cambodian man, deported by the United States to Eswatini under a programme to transfer illegal migrants to a third country, was repatriated this week, the southern African kingdom said Saturday.
Since the middle of last year, Eswatini has received and incarcerated 15 men deported by Washington, under an agreement in which it commits to eventually take in 160 people deemed undesirable by US President Donald Trump's administration in exchange for US$5.1 million.
The Cambodian is the second of the 15 men to be repatriated to his country, after a Jamaican in 2025.
A government statement spoke of the "successful repatriation of Mr. Pheap Rom, one of the third country nationals received from the United States of America, to his country of origin, the Kingdom of Cambodia, this week".
In September, Human Rights Watch said the US expulsions carried out under "opaque agreements" breached international law and should be rejected.
Lawyers in Eswatini have repeatedly warned that they have been systematically denied access to people expelled by the United States and that these individuals were detained without any charges. -- AFP
