&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "‘Iran has requested’: Emails reveal how ICE worked with Tehran to deport Iranians")
US immigration officials worked with Iranian authorities to arrange the deportation of more than 100 Iranians in late 2025 and early 2026, newly released emails show, offering a rare glimpse into cooperation between Washington and Tehran despite growing tensions between the two countries.
Hundreds of emails exchanged by US immigration officials were obtained by the National Iranian American Council and released on Tuesday (Aug 18). They provide a detailed account of how the US and Iranian governments coordinated three immigration flights that took Iranians back to Iran in September and December 2025 and January 2026.
The emails suggest Iranian officials had some influence over who was included on the deportation flights, with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials appearing to act on requests to change deportation lists, including shortly before flights departed.
"Per request from the Iran Embassy I added a few cases," an unnamed ICE official wrote in late August, about a month before the first flight. More than a week later, another official with the same job title said they had met with the "Director at the Iranian Embassy" before making another change to the deportation list.
‘Iran has requested that I amend…’
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"Iran has requested that I amend the previous manifest and expedite the removal process," the official wrote. In another email dated September 26, just three days before the flight was due to leave the US, an ICE official said the Iranian Embassy was still requesting that three additional Iranians be added to the flight. It remains unclear who ultimately travelled on the flight, which was significantly smaller than initially planned.
Iranian officials continued making requests on the day of departure, although one US official said those requests had been denied. The coordination continued even as ICE officials acknowledged internally that Iranians were fleeing their country amid the deadly 12-day war involving the US, Israel and Iran in June 2025, according to the emails.
The deportation flights took place only months after the US and Israel agreed to a ceasefire with Iran. The disclosures also highlight a significant shift from the US' decades-long approach towards Iranians following the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Washington has historically provided refuge to Iranian dissidents, exiles and others who fled the country after the revolution.
The emails now show that, despite the political tensions between Washington and Tehran, US immigration officials and Iranian authorities were able to maintain a channel of cooperation specifically over the removal of Iranian nationals from the US.
