The White House has temporarily suspended removal flights to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as an Ebola outbreak spreads, Politico reported, but public-health and immigration experts say the pause won’t stop the virus or address the larger problems created by recent deportation practices.
The pause comes after at least one high-profile case in which a 55-year-old Colombian woman, Adriana Zapata, was sent to Kinshasa more than a month ago even though Congolese authorities told US officials they could not meet her complex medical needs. A US judge ordered that she be returned, but US authorities say they cannot bring her back because of the newly instituted travel restrictions tied to the outbreak.
Zapata’s lawyer has expressed fear for her life if she remains abroad without adequate care. Advocates and journalists tracking so-called third-country removals argue the travel ban is being used as a legal rationale to avoid returning people moved against their will. Gillian Brockell, who monitors these removals, says officials would only publicly give up a major deterrent—sending detainees to distant African nations—if doing so served their interests.
Officials told Politico that removal flights risked exposing immigration agents to the virus and could bring the outbreak closer to the US. But some observers say the government’s reasoning is inconsistent: if it is unsafe to admit travelers from affected countries, denying returns to those same countries appears equally unsafe and legally fraught. Jeremy Konyndyk, president of Refugees International and a former top USAID Ebola official, noted that a ban on arrivals from the DRC, Uganda and South Sudan calls into question the safety and legality of deporting people to those places.
The pause leaves uncertainty for people already moved to outbreak-affected or neighboring countries. Brockell estimates at least 37 people were sent to such countries in recent months. Other experts place the total number of third-country removals in recent years between roughly 8,000 and 15,000.
Legal and humanitarian advocates warn that sending immigrants to countries where they face inadequate medical care or persecution could violate international law and amounts to outsourcing US immigration enforcement. Camille Mackler, an immigration attorney, said the practice risks exporting harm: detained migrants often lack access to sufficient medical care, and deportations without safeguards can have ripple effects across regions.
The US has previously evacuated people, including those with active Ebola, and specialists exist for high-risk medical evacuations. Critics say that logistical capacity proves the government could repatriate medically needy detainees like Zapata but is citing the outbreak as an excuse.
The Department of Homeland Security did not provide detailed answers about the paused removals or the fate of those already relocated. A DHS spokesperson said Immigration and Customs Enforcement follows applicable health and safety guidance when conducting removals.
Public-health authorities have rolled out entry-screening measures for travelers from the affected region. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said passengers from the DRC, Uganda and South Sudan will be routed to Washington Dulles International Airport for screening, testing and monitoring as part of layered efforts that include exit screening and post-arrival monitoring. Satish Pillai, the CDC’s Ebola response lead, described these measures as part of an overall risk-limiting approach.
Many public-health experts say those protocols make it unlikely that travelers screened at Dulles would introduce Ebola into the US. Alexandra Phelan of Johns Hopkins said the humane and health-protective course would be to honor the judge’s order to return Zapata and subject her to the same screening and monitoring used for other arrivals, including quarantine only if high-risk exposure is identified.
Advocates called for broader policy responses that would more effectively protect public health and vulnerable people. Yael Schacher of Refugees International urged restoring health-related humanitarian funding across Africa, granting temporary protected status for nationals of the DRC, Uganda and South Sudan, and halting all deportation flights to the region—including third-country removals of Latin Americans and others—until the outbreak is contained and adequate care can be ensured.
