Human Rights Watch reported that US immigration authorities have detained at least eight Nicaraguan exiles who were among 222 political prisoners expelled by the Ortega-Murillo government in February 2023 and granted humanitarian parole in the US, with at least four having pending asylum claims. At least two were arrested during court appointments or asylum interviews between April and September 2026, and five remained in detention as of the report; two others, including Marvin Castellón Ubilla, were released after being held for over two months. Among those detained is Marlon Gerardo Sáenz, a former pro-government paramilitary member who defected, was imprisoned in 2022, stripped of his nationality, and later resettled in the US as part of the 222; his lawyer has said Sáenz deserves a fair chance at asylum. The report comes after the US suspended humanitarian parole programs for Nicaraguans and others in 2025, and amid a sharp increase in deportations of Nicaraguans, with over 6,300 deported between January and July 2026 and more than 1,100 sent to third countries since January 2025, raising concerns about onward deportation to Nicaragua where exiled critics face surveillance, persecution, and in some cases killings.