Stop Deportation of Two Gay Iranian Men Facing Execution

Two gay Iranian men are scheduled for deportation this Sunday to Iran, where they face execution for homosexual conduct. One has received a temporary stay from the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, but the other remains at imminent risk. I urge you to intervene immediately with ICE and the Department of Homeland Security to halt this deportation. These men were arrested by Iran's morality police in 2021 for homosexual activity and fled before sentencing. They entered the United States in January 2025 seeking asylum. Their attorney, Rebekah Wolf of the American Immigration Council, describes these as textbook asylum cases. Yet their asylum hearings in late April and early May were conducted without legal representation and marred by bias and due process violations. A third LGBTQ+ person who traveled with them was granted asylum after a 45-minute hearing. The men have been transferred from Fort Bliss in El Paso to southern Arizona, where approximately three dozen Iranian nationals are assembled for Sunday's flight. ICE retains discretion to remove individuals from deportation flights even after final removal orders. Deporting these men would knowingly send them to their deaths. I urge you to contact ICE and DHS immediately to exercise that discretion and prevent this outcome. Time is critical.