Congo says it will receive third-country deportees under new deal with US

FILE PHOTO: A view shows buildings behind a street of the Gombe area, ahead of the announcement of provisional results of the December presidential election, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo December 30, 2023. (REUTERS/Justin Makangara/File Photo)

KINSHASA, April 5 (Reuters) - Democratic Republic of Congo will receive third-country nationals deported from the United States under a new deal with the Trump administration, the government in Kinshasa said in a statement on Sunday.

The government said it will receive deportees starting inApril, but did not say how many it had agreed to take. * The arrangement will be paid for by the United States,with no cost to the Congolese government, the statement said.

Facilities have been prepared near the capital Kinshasa toaccommodate the deportees, it said.

The United States has sent third-country deportees toseveral African countries including Ghana, Cameroon, EquatorialGuinea and Eswatini, drawing criticism from legal experts andrights groups.

The agreement coincides with an effort by the Trumpadministration to implement a peace deal between Congo andRwanda and an agreement ensuring U.S. access to Congolesecritical minerals.

(Writing by Nellie Peyton; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Ros Russell)