A 24-year-old Afghan man identified in court records as Khalil, who had previously been granted legal protection against removal to Afghanistan by a U.S. immigration judge due to the threat of Taliban persecution, was deported to the Central African Republic despite his protected status. His attorney, Alma David, said his family faced direct threats from the Taliban because of his brothers' history of supporting U.S. military operations: one brother, who lives in the United States, served in the Afghan National Army, while another, trained as a pilot by the U.S. military, was killed by the Taliban. He was among 12 Afghans on a flight that arrived in Bangui, alongside eight Iranians and individuals from Nepal and Nicaragua. It was the second deportation flight to the Central African Republic since June, when roughly two dozen migrants, including an Iranian woman fearing persecution, were sent there under similar arrangements.