The US has handed over data on Iranian asylum seekers to Tehran, claiming they face mortal danger in their home country.

The lawsuit, filed June 7 in federal court in Washington, alleges that the Donald Trump administration violated U.S. law by sharing confidential information about Iranians seeking asylum in the United States with the Iranian government. These individuals were slated for deportation, according to The Washington Post.

This claim is contained in materials submitted by the Iranian-American Legal Defense Fund and the Public Citizen Litigation Group. The plaintiffs argue that the documents, which they believe were handed over to Iranian authorities, could have endangered the lives of pro-democracy activists, members of religious minorities, the LGBT community, and their families.

The US State Department's annual report on human rights in Iran, published last year under the Trump administration, described the situation in the country as dire and deteriorating. The document states that authorities are persecuting political protesters and religious minorities. Previously, various US administrations have reported persecution of LGBT people in Iran, including criminal prosecutions and humiliating treatment.

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"The law is crystal clear that information in asylum applications is protected," said Michael Kirkpatrick, a lawyer representing Public Citizen and involved in the case. He added that this is a matter of life and death for those Iranians who will be deported back to their homeland.

Since Trump's return to power last year, hardline immigration advocates in his administration have taken a series of steps that opponents say undermine the established practice of granting asylum to people claiming persecution. The administration and its allies claim the asylum system has become overwhelmed and, in some cases, abused.

The lawsuit names as defendants US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of the Department of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin, and Acting Director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) David Venturella, as well as the agencies they lead.

The State Department referred questions about asylum records to the Department of Homeland Security.

Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Lauren Bies said: "Allegations that ICE shared data from asylum applications with the Iranian government are FALSE."

"ICE works with each country to obtain travel documents for detainees," Bice said, adding that the agency ensures "unauthorized aliens" have access to their consulate and provides consular access to detainees in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and internal policies.

Iran's mission to the UN did not respond to a request for comment.

The plaintiffs are demanding an end to the alleged practice and that the US government notify everyone whose personal data was transferred to Iranian authorities without their consent. It remains unclear how the government will respond and whether the lawsuit has any chance of success.

Despite years of tensions between the US and Iran, which escalated into a full-scale military conflict in February, more than 100 people have been deported from the US to Iran since Trump's return to power in 2025, according to human rights groups and Iranian media reports.

Last year, Iranian authorities announced they had reached an agreement with the Trump administration to accept approximately 400 deported Iranian citizens. Later, according to lawyers representing a group of deportees, at least one Iranian was among those sent from the United States to the Central African Republic.

The lawsuit, filed July 7 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, includes details of alleged closed-door meetings between Trump administration officials and Iranian officials beginning in March 2025.

Since the United States and Iran do not have diplomatic relations, Tehran's interests in Washington are represented by the Iranian Interests Section at the Pakistani Embassy.

Kirkpatrick told The Washington Post that the allegations in the lawsuit are based in part on testimony from an Iranian government official working at the Pakistani embassy, ​​as well as on accounts from deportees who said Iranian authorities knew details of their U.S. asylum applications.

The lawsuit does not disclose the identities of the Iranian officials or deportees with whom the lawyers spoke. The Pakistani Embassy did not respond to a request for comment.

According to the lawsuit, at the first meeting in March 2025, State Department officials met in Washington with representatives of the Iran Interests Section. The Trump administration's intention to deport Iranians to Iran was discussed. The American side provided a list of approximately 150 names. The lawsuit does not identify the meeting's participants.

Following this, the plaintiffs allege, an agreement was reached to hold monthly meetings between ICE and Iranian officials, at which the administration would share information about Iranians in U.S. custody.

Furthermore, the lawsuit alleges that after February 28, when the US and Israel launched their war against Iran and in-person meetings between ICE and Iranian officials ceased, US officials continued to send documentation to Iranian authorities.

According to human rights organizations tracking deportations, approximately 115 Iranian citizens were sent back to the United States on three flights. The last of these flights allegedly took place on January 26—just weeks after anti-government protests in Iran were brutally suppressed, leading to the deaths of thousands.

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Earlier this year, Trump expressed sympathy for the protesters, declaring on January 13: "Help is on the way."

It is unclear how many of those deported had pending asylum applications when they returned to Iran. Lawyers for some of those deported stated that those sent back included members of high-risk groups.

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