Newly released internal government emails are raising serious questions about how the Trump Administration handled the deportation of Iranian nationals from the United States. Hundreds of ICE emails obtained through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit reveal that U.S. immigration officials maintained a working channel with Iranian officials while arranging deportation flights to Iran—even as relations between the United States and Iran were extraordinarily hostile. More than 100 Iranians were returned on three separate flights in September and December 2025 and January 2026. (ABC News)
The documents did not come from a government whistleblower or an accidental leak. They were obtained by the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) through the Freedom of Information Act. NIAC submitted its FOIA request in October 2025 seeking records about ICE arrests, detention of Iranian nationals, deportation flights, and communications surrounding those removals. After ICE failed to provide the requested information, NIAC, working with Red Eagle Law, filed a federal FOIA lawsuit against the agency in Washington, D.C. The lawsuit was filed on November 13, 2025, and eventually resulted in the production of government records concerning the deportation operation. (NIAC)
What those emails reportedly show is particularly troubling. According to the Associated Press, Iranian officials were not simply being contacted to confirm citizenship or issue travel documents. ICE officials referred to requests from Iranian representatives to add particular people to deportation manifests, remove others, and expedite certain removals. The records also indicate direct meetings with an Iranian delegation and Iranian officials. At least one individual was apparently placed on a deportation flight even though that person was not on the final approved manifest, prompting an ICE official to question internally how the person had gotten onto the aircraft. (ABC News)
The emails also suggest that deportations to Iran were treated as a high-level White House priority, even during the June 2025 military conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran. ICE officials recognized internally that arranging removals would be difficult because Iranian airspace was closed and Iran was not issuing the necessary travel documents. Nevertheless, officials were directed to develop a way to move forward. Qatar ultimately played an intermediary role in helping facilitate the flights. (ABC News)
Even more concerning for asylum seekers are reports that Iranian government representatives were permitted to meet with Iranian nationals held in ICE detention. In a separate federal lawsuit, eleven Iranian detainees alleged that Iranian officials appeared to know sensitive details about their asylum claims. That lawsuit alleges that U.S. immigration agencies unlawfully disclosed confidential asylum information to Iranian authorities. DHS strongly denies that allegation, and the newly released emails do not by themselves establish that confidential asylum applications were improperly disclosed. Nevertheless, federal regulations provide significant confidentiality protections for asylum-related information precisely because disclosure to a person’s home government can expose an asylum seeker or family members to retaliation. (ABC News)
These disclosures matter far beyond the Iranian community. Deportation normally requires some communication with a foreign government to obtain travel documents and arrange a person’s return. But there is an enormous difference between coordinating the mechanics of a lawful removal and permitting the very government from which a person may fear persecution to influence who is placed on a deportation flight. For Iranian asylum seekers, religious converts, political dissidents, ethnic minorities, women opposing government repression and others who fear the Iranian authorities, the consequences of such cooperation can potentially be life-threatening.
The emails also demonstrate why immigrants with final removal orders, pending asylum matters, prior asylum denials, or ICE detention should obtain legal advice before removal becomes imminent. Once ICE begins arranging travel documents and placing an individual on a removal manifest, there may be very little time to seek a stay of removal, reopen an immigration case, pursue protection under the Convention Against Torture, challenge an unlawful deportation, or seek emergency federal court relief.
If you or a family member needs help with asylum or reopening an immigration case, contact Shepelsky Law Group immediately. Our immigration attorneys represent clients in asylum, removal defense, motions to reopen, ICE detention and other complex immigration matters throughout the United States. Call Shepelsky Law Group at (718) 769-6352 or visit shepelskylaw.com to schedule a consultation.