ICE, Iran quietly worked together on deporting Iranians to Iran, emails show
Updated on: August 20, 2026 / 9:04 PM EDT / CBS/AP
TL;DR
- Hundreds of emails reveal U.S. immigration officials worked with Iran to deport Iranians in late 2025 and early 2026.
- Iranian officials had influence over deportation lists, with U.S. officials heeding last-minute changes.
- Coordination continued despite an ongoing war between the U.S. and Israel with Iran.
- The deportations are a departure from the U.S. practice of welcoming Iranian dissidents since 1979.
- Human rights activists criticize deporting Iranians to a country with a pattern of persecution.
- DHS states ICE removed individuals with final orders of removal and denies sharing asylum records.
- Emails suggest pressure for deportations came from the Trump administration.
- There are allegations that U.S. immigration agencies shared confidential asylum information with the Iranian government, which DHS denies.