The United States sent around a dozen Iranians on a deportation flight back to their homeland, marking the first deportation since Tehran’s massive crackdown on protests.
A source told CNN that the flight took off on Sunday evening with 14 people on board. Those on board were not Iranians previously selected to return home, as they had been exposed to a measles outbreak.
Sunday’s flight was the third under a rare agreement between Washington and Tehran. It occurs at a time of unprecedented tensions between the countries as President Donald Trump weighs strike options against the country over its deadly crackdown on protesters.
“While the administration does not typically comment on specific flights to protect operational security, any individuals being deported would have Executable Final Orders meaning a federal judge has ordered their removal from the United States,” the White House told CNN in a statement. “The Administration remains committed to using all lawful options to carry out the largest mass deportation operation of criminal illegal aliens in history.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House for further comment.
At least two of the Iranians slated for deportation, who were not on Sunday’s flight, claim they’re gay, so they fear execution if sent home.
Deportations to Iran are already controversial due to Tehran’s human rights record, but Sunday’s flight was particularly so due to it coming after the government’s massacre of thousands of protesters earlier this month.
The crackdown against the protests that began on Dec. 28, 2025, was the most brutal in Iran’s history, including security forces firing rifles, machine guns, and other automatic weapons at unarmed protesters. The death toll varies vastly due to the internet blackout, which still hasn’t been lifted, but among the highest totals was given to Time magazine by two senior officials from Iran’s Ministry of Health, only counting those killed on the nights of Jan. 8 and Jan. 9. That total exceeds 30,000, which would make the massacre one of the largest single mass killings in modern history.
IRAN MAY HAVE KILLED OVER 30,000 PROTESTERS IN TWO DAYS: REPORT
The officials reported that so many protesters were killed that the state ran out of body bags, and the use of ambulances was changed to 18-wheel semi-trailers.
The Health Ministry’s count is further supported by a count gathered by physicians and first responders, also shared with Time, which reported 30,304 deaths recorded by hospitals. Dr. Amir Parasta, a German-Iranian eye surgeon who worked on the data, said this is almost certainly a massive undercount, as it didn’t take into account protesters registered at military hospitals, those taken directly to morgues, or those killed in more remote regions.
