The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has strongly refuted claims that the United States intends to deport a Salvadoran national, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, to Ghana.
His response follows multiple media reports alleging that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had informed Abrego Garcia’s lawyers of plans to send him to Ghana after a series of failed deportation attempts to other countries.
According to U.S. court documents, DHS had previously considered deporting Abrego Garcia to Eswatini and Uganda, after he was wrongfully deported to El Salvador and later returned to the U.S.
Abrego Garcia, a native of El Salvador, had been residing in Maryland with his wife and children before being deported in March to the country’s CECOT mega-prison, despite a 2019 court order prohibiting his removal there due to credible fears of persecution.
The deportation—executed during the Trump administration—was justified by allegations linking him to the MS-13 criminal gang, claims that his family and legal team have repeatedly denied.
He was later returned to the U.S. in June to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee, to which he has pleaded not guilty. After his conditional release into his brother’s custody, he was re-arrested by immigration officials, who resumed efforts to deport him.
A U.S. immigration judge recently denied a motion to reopen his case, paving the way for further deportation proceedings.
However, in a Facebook post on Friday, October 10, 2025, Minister Ablakwa categorically stated that Ghana has no connection to the case and will not accept Abrego Garcia.
“Ghana is not accepting Abrego Garcia. He cannot be deported to Ghana,” the minister said. “This has been directly and unambiguously conveyed to U.S. authorities.”
Mr. Ablakwa clarified that while Ghana has agreed—on humanitarian grounds—to receive a limited number of non-criminal West Africans, this arrangement does not and will not extend to individuals from other regions or those facing criminal allegations.
“In my discussions with U.S. officials, I made it clear that our humanitarian understanding applies only to a small number of non-criminal West Africans. It will not be expanded beyond that,” he noted.
He also condemned the reports linking Ghana to the deportation plan, describing them as “misleading and inaccurate.”
“Ghana strongly objects to these misleading media reports,” he emphasized.
Meanwhile, Abrego Garcia’s legal team is expected to appear in court later today for an evidentiary hearing, during which U.S. government witnesses are expected to testify regarding efforts to deport him to Eswatini or other countries.
