Vietnamese sent to South Sudan under Trump’s third-country deportation scheme goes home
A Vietnamese national deported to South Sudan by Donald Trump’s administration under its controversial third-country deportation programme was repatriated to Vietnam on Friday after spending more than a year in detention.
South Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the repatriation of 44-year-old Tuan Phan at a press briefing on Friday.
“We are grateful that while in our custody Mr Phan was very disciplined, joyful, and importantly, he remained healthy,” spokesman Agok Anyar said.
Phan and seven other men were sent to Africa in May 2025, were diverted first to a US military base in Djibouti after a federal judge blocked their deportation to South Sudan midflight, citing procedural irregularities.
They arrived in Juba, South Sudan’s capital, aboard a military aircraft in July 2025 after a Supreme Court ruling greenlit their removal.
The eight men all have criminal convictions in the US but had served their prison sentences when they were taken into custody last year.