U.S. immigration authorities have notified Kilmar Abrego Garcia that he will be deported to Uganda — less than a day after a judge ordered his release from federal custody.
The move comes as part of a newly disclosed agreement between Washington and Kampala that allows the U.S. to send deportees who are not Ugandan citizens to the East African nation, according to court filings made public over the weekend.
Abrego Garcia, a native of El Salvador, had rejected an earlier proposal to be deported to Costa Rica in exchange for pleading guilty to human smuggling charges and remaining in jail, court records show.
Uganda’s “temporary arrangement”
Uganda confirmed last week that it had entered into what officials described as a temporary deal with the U.S. government. Under the arrangement, the country will accept deportees from Africa who have no criminal records.
“The Agreement is in respect of Third Country Nationals who may not be granted asylum in the United States but are reluctant to or may have concerns about returning to their countries of origin,” Bagiire Vincent Waiswa, Uganda’s permanent secretary in the Foreign Ministry, said in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter.
He added that minors and individuals with criminal convictions would not be eligible, and that preference would be given to people from African countries. “The two parties are working out the detailed modalities on how the agreement shall be implemented,” the statement read.
Uganda did not disclose what it would receive in return. Similar agreements in other African countries, such as Eswatini, have reportedly been linked to trade concessions, including lower tariffs.
A contested release
Abrego Garcia was released Friday from a Tennessee jail, where he had been held for months after being mistakenly deported earlier this year to a prison in El Salvador. His case has drawn protests and advocacy campaigns, particularly after a U.S. court ordered that he be returned to American soil in June.
“Today, Kilmar Abrego Garcia is free. He is presently en route to his family in Maryland,” his attorney, Sean Hecker, said Friday. He described his client’s detention and deportation as “a vindictive attack on a man who had the courage to fight back against the Administration’s continuing assault on the rule of law.”
But by the end of the day, the Department of Homeland Security had instructed Abrego Garcia to report to immigration authorities Monday, where he would face deportation to Uganda.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem condemned his release, calling Abrego Garcia “the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens.” In a statement, she accused a Maryland judge of “ordering this monster loose on America’s streets” and pledged that the administration “will not stop fighting till this Salvadoran man faces justice and is OUT of our country.”
Home confinement and pending trial
For now, Abrego Garcia remains under home detention at his brother’s house in Maryland. He is required to wear an electronic monitoring device and can only leave for work, court appearances, or religious services. He is barred from contacting co-defendants, witnesses, or any members of the MS-13 gang.
His federal trial on human smuggling charges is scheduled for January.
Politics and trade in the background
The case highlights how deportation policy has become central to President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda in his second term. Earlier this year, after a mistaken deportation, his administration was forced by court order to bring Abrego Garcia back from El Salvador.
The broader deal with Uganda could carry economic implications as well. Kampala has been pushing to ease U.S. tariffs — now at 15 percent on many of its exports — which officials say threaten key sectors such as coffee, cocoa, vanilla, and petroleum. The U.S. exports machinery and aircraft parts to Uganda, which in turn imposes an 18 percent tariff.
Relations between the two countries have frayed in recent years. The Biden administration had previously criticized Uganda over a sweeping anti-homosexuality law passed in 2023, which imposed harsh penalties including life sentences. Despite tensions, the U.S. remains a significant aid donor to Uganda, particularly in health and security.
