US authorities deported between 30 and 60 Russian citizens in one day in the middle of this week, Dmitry Valuev, president of the non-governmental organization Russian America for Democracy in Russia, told the independent media outlet Agency on Friday (August 29). The mass deportation took place on Wednesday. The Russians were first taken by plane to Egypt, where they were met by members of local services, and then put on a flight to Domodedovo Airport in Moscow.
Some of the Russians tried to change their flights, but were beaten up by Egyptian security forces, Valuev revealed.
Why did the US deport the Russians?
The Russians deported from the US were either in immigration detention awaiting deportation, had lost their right to asylum, or had decided to leave the US without waiting for a court decision.
The human rights activist added that some of the deportees fear political persecution in Russia.
The agency reported that among those deported from the US was a former serviceman who was accused of desertion in his home country and had applied for asylum in the US but was rejected.
One detained, others released on bail
The passengers who flew from Egypt to Moscow were subjected to lengthy interrogations at the Russian border, Valuev said. At least one person was detained, while several others were released on bail, he said.
Vladimir Osechkin, founder of the human rights organization Gulagu.net, was the first to draw attention to the mass deportations on Thursday. He also said the Russians were put through a “filtering” system in Moscow, where they were interrogated for several hours. Some of them were beaten, he said.
This is the second mass deportation of Russians from the United States this summer. In June, US authorities deported about 40 people to Russia.
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