ICE Quietly Deported Over 100 Iranians to Iran Amid Rising War Tensions, Report Says

While the U.S. and Iran edged closer to war last year, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was quietly running an operation of its own — reportedly working behind the scenes to send Iranian nationals back into the country.

According to internal ICE emails reviewed by The Intercept on August 18, officials coordinated with both the Iranian regime and Qatari authorities throughout 2025 to deport more than 100 Iranian nationals, including political activists and members of religious and ethnic minorities who feared persecution if returned.

Deporting Iranians has historically been difficult.

According to the official report by the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. and Iran have had no formal diplomatic relations since 1979, and Iran frequently withheld the travel documents needed to carry out removals.

That changed on June 19, 2025, when ICE leadership pushed staff to move faster.

“Please begin working on a plan to remove all removable FO [final order] Iranians in custody,” ICE official Marcos Charles wrote, according to the emails obtained by the outlet.  “We need a plan forward ASAP.”

Officials initially hit resistance. “Unfortunately I do not have great news,” one wrote, noting Iran wasn’t issuing documents quickly and its airspace was closed amid the conflict. ICE pressed on anyway, the report states, according to People.

The first major flight departed September  29, 2025, eventually routing through Qatar, where 54 Iranian nationals boarded a Qatar Airways flight bound for Tehran, according to Reuters.

Emails show Iran had specifically requested three people be added to that flight after issuing them last-minute travel documents.

Separately, one Iranian national who wasn’t on the approved manifest still ended up on the plane.

“This is unfortunate,” one official wrote in one of the email chains as per The Intercept.

A colleague replied, “I have no idea how the case/person got through to the plane.” The individual was deported regardless.

The New York Times reported in July that a lawsuit filed last month by the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund goes further, alleging ICE officials shared sensitive asylum seeker records with Iranian authorities as part of a broader effort to “get rid of all Iranians.”

As per the outlet, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson denied the claim, calling it “FALSE.”