HUMSI — Human Security Initiative

Human Impact Project

A living database documenting reported immigration enforcement incidents and their human impact.

Roberto M.: Cuban and Yemeni men deported to Eswatini, imprisoned nine months without charges

A Cuban man and a Yemeni man, among five deported to Eswatini, have been imprisoned there without charges since July 2025, though a court recently granted them access to a lawyer.

Apr 10, 2026

Roberto M.: Cuban and Yemeni men deported to Eswatini, imprisoned nine months without charges
Photo via The Guardian

Two migrants—one from Cuba and one from Yemen—were deported to Eswatini on July 16, 2025, as part of a group of five men sent to the country. Roberto Mosquera, the Cuban, was arrested by ICE at a routine immigration check-in in Florida on June 13, 2025, and deported without notice. Both men have been imprisoned in Eswatini's Matsapha Correctional Centre in isolation with no charges filed and initially no legal representation permitted. Their attorney states they have already served their U.S. sentences and are being held indefinitely while awaiting repatriation. In April 2026, after nine months of detention, Eswatini's Supreme Court ruled they have the right to meet with a local lawyer, a right previously denied. Civil society organizations have threatened legal action challenging the legality of their detention under Eswatini law.

Timeline

Apr 10, 2026—Eswatini Supreme Court rules detainees have right to meet with local lawyer after nine months of denied in-person legal access
Mar 5, 2026—Cuban and Yemeni men file complaint with African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights; one detainee had conducted 30-day hunger strike in late 2025
Jul 18, 2025—Civil society organizations threaten legal action over deportations and detention without charges or legal access
Jul 16, 2025—Five men deported from U.S. to Eswatini aboard military plane; Cuban and Yemeni men imprisoned at Matsapha Correctional Centre in solitary confinement
Jun 13, 2025—Roberto Mosquera, Cuban immigrant, arrested by ICE at routine immigration check-in in Miramar, Florida
Suggest a correction, comment, or update

Tags

Sources

Show 10 more sources ↓
Similar Incidents

Loading…

Related incidents