Two months after Iran received its first deportation flight from the US under the Trump administration, it has confirmed a second flight is now on its way.
"Within the coming days, approximately 50 to 55 of these Iranian nationals will return to Iran," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters at a press briefing on Sunday.
"The deportation of Iranians who were returned from the US [is] apparently for legal reasons and violating immigration laws, which is a claim made by American authorities," he added.
The National Iranian American Council (NIAC) had called on the US government to halt the flight, given "individuals with credible fear of retaliation and abuses by Iranian authorities" who were on board.
The group said in a statement that at least one detainee had been physically assaulted by guards while in detention, and that Iranian nationals in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody have been told they will be "forced on this deportation flight against their will - with one detainee being told they would be drugged if necessary".
