The Independent reported that attorney Ali Rahnama said a deportation flight carrying Iranian detainees was canceled in Arizona on Nov. 8, as a court dispute over wartime removals continued.
Rahnama, who represents some detainees through the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund, said at least eight people boarded in Mesa. He said the itinerary included stops in Georgia and Pakistan, and that detainees had been told Iranian officials would arrange their onward travel to Iran. Rahnama said he was given no reason for the cancellation.
U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes' order requires the government to alert the court 24 hours ahead of a finalized deportation plan. It also requires five days' written notice before deporting an Iranian to Iran or any other country. In a Nov. 8 filing, the fund argued the planned flight may have violated the order.
The fund's lawsuit alleges U.S. officials shared confidential information about Iranian asylum seekers with Iranian authorities. Reyes has not ruled on that allegation.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not confirm the flight, the Associated Press reported. DHS said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) does not discuss prospective removal operations, including flight schedules or passenger details. The Associated Press also reported that three earlier flights carried more than 100 Iranian nationals to Iran between September 2025 and January 2026.
The fund has called for removal flights to stop. Its executive director, Yasmin Chubin, warned that people returned to Iran could face “persecution, torture or death.”
