A federal judge has ordered U.S. officials to facilitate the release and return of Ahmed Soliman, a gay man who grew up in Phoenix and was deported to Equatorial Guinea despite having no ties to the country.
There is now movement toward complying with that order.
On October 9, NPR reported that the government had begun working with his lawyers to locate and contact him and start arranging his return. His arrival back in the United States has not been confirmed.
Soliman came to the U.S. from Egypt at four. He later became a lawful permanent resident. Criminal convictions led to imprisonment and immigration removal proceedings.
But an immigration judge granted him protection against removal to Egypt, finding that he faced a clear probability of torture because of his sexual orientation and his family’s political background.
U.S. officials instead deported him to Equatorial Guinea in April.
In an October 6 order, U.S. District Judge John C. Hinderaker found that Soliman had been removed without notice or a meaningful opportunity to raise fears about being sent there. The judge ruled that the government violated his due-process rights.
The court record describes what followed: confinement under armed guard, threats at gunpoint, beatings and detention without communication with his family or lawyers.
Soliman had spoken to journalists about conditions after his deportation. His subsequent detention left those trying to help him unable to maintain contact.
The judge ordered officials to facilitate his release and return, and to handle his case as it would have been handled had he not been improperly removed. Any further third-country removal must include notice and a meaningful opportunity to be heard.
The ruling does not grant him permanent permission to stay in the United States. DHS has said it will comply with lawful court orders while continuing to pursue his removal.
That distinction matters. So does the protection at the heart of this case: criminal convictions do not remove a person’s right to due process or make torture an acceptable consequence.
For Soliman and the people waiting for news of him, the next milestone is practical and urgent—release from custody, confirmed safety and an actual return.
📷 Ahmed Soliman photograph courtesy of Kate O’Donnell.
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