Noslén Sendra, who suffers from diabetes and acute pancreatitis, was told that Mexico rejected him.
14ymedio, Havana, October 22, 2026 / Noslén Sendra, a Cuban man with diabetes and acute pancreatitis, is one of the sick migrants who will be deported by the US to Africa. According to Arianne Betancourt, a migrant rights organizer with the Workers Circle, who spoke to the British newspaper The Guardian, deportation agents informed Sendra of his transfer, noting that Mexico had refused to accept him.
Figures published last July by Al Jazeera indicate that 6,000 Cubans were deported by the US and sent to southern Mexico. According to the report, these mass deportations to Mexico are part of “a permanent, unwritten agreement to accept Cuban citizens for deportation.”
Noslén Sendra, a 41-year-old Cuban man at the Krome Service Processing Center, was told that “Mexico wouldn’t accept him because he needs too much medication.” Nor is Cuba an option. However, he has to be deported, and he’s been told it will be to Africa. The migrant’s wife, Anisley Cortés, has been living in uncertainty since she found out, “not knowing how he is or if we’ll ever see him again.”
The woman told the same media outlet that Sendra, who has been imprisoned since last November and was held at the Alligator Alcatraz prison until last April, lost 22 kilos (48 pounds). “They weren’t giving him his medication or enough food. It was a nightmare for all of us,” she said. “He’s very sick and needs proper medical attention.”
Sendra, who has been imprisoned since last November and was held at the Alligator Alcatraz prison until last April, has lost 48 pounds
“We know that once deported and sent to these third countries, they do not receive medical attention in the detention centers. They have difficulty obtaining medication,” Betancourt warned.
Yasmany Moreno, who is in one of the six detention centers in Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic, has denounced the “inhuman” conditions in which the deportees are being held.
The poor conditions and food have taken their toll on Moreno and four other Cubans, who are experiencing “diarrhea, headaches, and fatigue,” symptoms of malaria. UN personnel provided them with a box of doxycycline for treatment.
Without specifying the number of people, Betancourt — the immigrant rights organizer for Workers Circle — indicated that those expelled are currently in two immigrant detention centers in Florida.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security denied to The Guardian that sick migrants are being sent to third countries. “No sick detainees are deported. All detainees receive medical clearance before travel and leave with the necessary medication,” the spokesperson stated.
The official said the story was false and that they were trying to discredit ICE agents, who, he claimed, “are facing an increase of more than 1600% in attacks against them.”
Between January 20, 2025, and August 31, 2026, at least 25,447 citizens have been deported from the United States to countries with which they have no ties. The Forbidden Stories consortium has presented an interactive map of these transfers, largely kept quiet by the U.S. government, revealing that some 35 countries have signed agreements for which the Trump administration has allocated a total budget of $410 million.
______________________
COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.