In Eswatini, a small landlocked kingdom in southern Africa, officials say the migrants are in a correctional facility and will be repatriated with support from the International Organization of Migration (IOM).
The US State Department has said Eswatini’s prisons face problems of overcrowding, poor ventilation, and deficiencies in dietary nutrition and health services.
“We don’t foresee they will stay long enough to be integrated into society,” Eswatini government spokesperson Thabile Mdluli told the BBC, without giving any indication of how long they would stay in the country, or whether they would serve the rest of their sentences first.
The US government says those who have been deported to Eswatini committed “barbaric” crimes including child rape, murder and sexual assault.
A backlash is growing in Eswatini.
The country’s largest opposition party, the People’s United Democratic Movement (Pudemo) says that the agreement between the two countries was “human trafficking disguised as a deportation deal”.
Pro-democracy activist Lucky Lukhele says the country must not become “a dumping ground for criminals”.
Even if international law has been violated, Prof Super says the US is unlikely to face consequences as it does not recognise many international courts.
“This appears to be about deterrence, sending a message that if you come to the US you’ll be treated very, very harshly,” he says.
Regardless of legality, third-country deportations often place vulnerable individuals in unfamiliar environments with little support or legal status, says Dr Edwards.
“It’s a deeply flawed idea.”
She stresses that the human rights community is not trying to block each and every deportation – only where people face human rights violations.