US Deportees Beaten in Equatorial Guinea Prison
Left 100%
Center 0%
Right 0%
2 left · 0 center · 0 right
What happened
On September 11, two men previously deported from the United States to Equatorial Guinea—Ahmed Soliman, 31, of Egypt, and Samson Birhane, 47, of Eritrea—were bound, hooded, beaten, and pushed down stairs at Hotel Bamy in Malabo, according to witnesses and lawyers, then transferred to a prison. The United States has sent at least 66 people from African countries, Cuba, and Brazil to Equatorial Guinea under a third-country arrangement; Equatorial Guinea received $7.5 million, and about 30 deportees remain at the hotel under armed guard. Both men had lost U.S. legal status after criminal convictions (drug possession and robbery) but had U.S. court findings that they would face persecution or torture if returned to their home countries. ICE said it is no longer responsible once people leave its custody and that they were sent to a safe third country; the State Department said it uses legal means to remove those with no right to remain and declined to discuss diplomatic communications.
Sourcing check · No one on the record · 3 articles
ANONYMOUS SOURCES ONLY · NO ONE ON THE RECORD IN 3 ARTICLES
No article cites a named source; the reporting relies on people who aren't identified. It started with unnamed sources and none has been named since.
What these terms mean and how they're counted
- On the record · names a source 0 of 3
- On the record means the article cites a source by name for the story's main claim: a person, or an institution speaking officially, such as a company statement or a named agency's spokesperson. The opposite is an unnamed source. The count is how many of the counted articles cite at least one such source; the names are everyone named across them, each once however the articles spell it. Here: No article does.
- Primary evidence · cites a document or data 0 of 3
- Primary evidence means the article cites a record you could check yourself: a court filing or ruling, a dataset or report, a recording or transcript, an official statement or press release, market data. A quote is not a document. The count is how many articles cite one. Here: None cited.
- Credits another outlet 0 of 3
- The article says the story comes from another outlet's reporting (“first reported by Reuters”). Those articles relay the story; they are not independent confirmation. Here: Each article presents its own reporting.
- Unnamed sources 3 of 3
- The main claim is attributed to people who are not identified: “people familiar with the matter”, “officials said”. The count is how many articles do this. Here: e.g. “Witnesses say”
- How it developed
- When the first report landed and whether it named anyone; when the first named source and the first document appeared. Here: First report Sep 18, 15:10 UTC by New York Times, with no named source. No article has named one since.
- Not counted 0
- Opinion, analysis and video pieces, and articles too short to assess. Every count above is out of the counted articles. An article republished under a new headline is one article.
This is about who is cited, not whether the story is true. Each source below says what it names. How we count
ONE-SIDED THIS WEEK.
Only left-leaning outlets have covered this story in the last two days;
Fox News reported it on 2026-09-18.
Omitted — what each side leaves out
Unpacked
Left-leaning coverage reports that two men deported from the United States were bound, fitted with bags over their heads, beaten and pushed down stairs at Hotel Bamy in Equatorial Guinea, then taken to a prison while other U.S. deportees watched. The Guardian identifies them as Ahmed Soliman of Egypt and Samson Birhane of Eritrea and says the beating followed a video of hotel conditions. The Guardian reports that ICE said it is no longer responsible once people leave its custody, and called Equatorial Guinea a "safe third country." The State Department said it would use all legal means to remove people with no right to remain, and declined to say whether it knew how deportees were treated. The New York Times frames Equatorial Guinea as an autocratic partner in President Trump's deportation program. Left-leaning outlets do not disagree on the beating itself. Right-leaning outlets had not covered this as of publication, leaving those readers without the alleged hotel violence or the U.S. agencies' replies.
Did the deportation deal with Equatorial Guinea include any enforceable limits on how the United States' deportees could be held?
Bottom line
Right-leaning outlets have not reported the Hotel Bamy beatings, so only left-leaning readers see ICE calling Equatorial Guinea a "safe third country."
The receipts — 5 facts one side's coverage lacks
- Two U.S. deportees were bound, fitted with bags over their heads, beaten and pushed down stairs at Hotel Bamy, then taken to a prison
- Equatorial Guinea received $7.5 million as part of a deal to cooperate with the U.S. deportation program
- The U.S. has sent at least 66 people from African countries, Cuba and Brazil to Equatorial Guinea
- The African Commission issued an urgent interim order instructing Equatorial Guinea to refrain from deporting, transferring, or relocating deportees against their will
- At least 12 people have been returned by Equatorial Guinea to their home countries, where they face persecution
The Left View
The New York Times and The Guardian report that Hotel Bamy in Malabo has functioned as a detention site for U.S. deportees, where witnesses say Soliman and Birhane were beaten in view of others after a video of conditions and guard behavior circulated, then sent to prison. Coverage describes 24/7 armed guards, confiscated phones, barred lawyer visits, lack of medical care (including for a hernia, HIV, and diabetes), and alleged retaliation for contacting media and advocates. Outlets note UN experts’ appeal against returns to home countries, an African Commission interim order, unanswered lawyer emails to the U.S. embassy, and ICE/State Department statements that disclaim ongoing responsibility. Lawyers call the situation a human rights catastrophe involving an autocratic partner in the Trump administration’s third-country deportation program.
Our Take (balanced)
The story is substantive on core facts: named individuals, a specific date and place, reported videos, lawyer emails, a UN appeal, an African Commission order, and on-record ICE and State Department comments. The beatings, alleged motive (speaking to press or possessing phones), day-to-day conditions, and fear of further harm rest on witness and lawyer accounts that Equatorial Guinea and U.S. officials have not publicly confirmed or denied. Established: third-country transfers occurred, a paid cooperation arrangement exists, two named men were moved from the hotel to prison after the reported incident, and U.S. agencies have issued the quoted responses. Remaining alleged: the precise sequence and cause of the violence and the full medical and confinement conditions. No right-leaning outlet has reported this. Watch for Equatorial Guinea government statements, any U.S. embassy or diplomatic records, independent video or medical corroboration, and court or UN follow-up.
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