A pregnant Ghanaian woman and her 4-year-old son, who spent more than a week confined to a windowless room at Washington Dulles International Airport after arriving on valid tourist visas, are on a flight back to Ghana following a federal judge’s order on Friday, May 29, 2026, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Virginia.

CNN reports that hours before the flight departed, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema stated in her order that “the welfare of the petitioners and the interests of justice are best served by allowing petitioners to return home immediately.”

At an earlier hearing in Alexandria, Virginia, Brinkema had told the U.S. government that Anabella Gyasi, 38, and her son must be released from the holding room at the airport before the end of the day.

“She cannot spend tonight at Dulles,” said Brinkema, a Clinton nominee to the federal bench, per CNN reporting. “One way or another, we’re going to get her out.”

Gyasi came to the United States on a tourist visa after securing an appointment at Akron Children’s Hospital in Ohio for her son to be evaluated for possible surgery to address severe physical abnormalities affecting his fingers on both hands.

The family had traveled to the U.S. for treatment two years earlier, but Gyasi was told her child was too young for surgery at that time. Their tourist visas expire in 2028, according to the habeas petition filed by the ACLU.

Instead of being able to board her connecting flight to Ohio, Gyasi – who is four and a half months pregnant – and her son were taken into custody after she “disclosed her fear of returning to Ghana based on the persecution she and her son faced” during questioning by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. They were then “locked in a holding room” at the airport and “denied adequate food and medical care,” the petition alleged.

Mother hospitalized twice during detention

Gyasi was hospitalized twice over the past week, initially for lightheadedness and then for vaginal bleeding, which doctors attributed to high stress and high blood pressure. Medical staff “were concerned that she was not eating enough and fed her. They even gave her food to take back with her,” her attorneys alleged in court documents. Gyasi told officials she and her son were not familiar with food in the U.S., and it was making her sick and weak.

Four days after her arrival – and after repeated requests for more food – the petition said Gyasi agreed to be deported, “fearing that she might lose her unborn child.”

“Because I’m pregnant, I am getting weaker and weaker by the day,” she told a CBP officer, according to an official transcript. Her son had “spent much of the day crying because of his hunger pains,” and CBP officers allegedly denied her request to purchase food, “saying she could only access the food they gave her.”

However, after she initially agreed to drop her asylum request, officers “offered to get her whatever food she wanted” and let her and her son shower for the first time since their detention, according to the petition. Gyasi’s attorneys said her agreement for self-deportation was prompted by “desperation for the health and well-being” of her son and her unborn child, and that she did “not wish to relinquish their asylum claims.”

Government denies mistreatment allegations

The Department of Homeland Security has denied the allegations of mistreatment, with a spokesperson stating that “everyone in CBP custody, including this individual, has access to appropriate care, including medical evaluation by a doctor, medication, and food.” The government also argued that Gyasi’s tourist visa was not valid because she “admitted under oath … her intent was not to leave the United States to return to Ghana.”

Gyasi said in a statement to immigration authorities under oath that she had been researching the possibility of claiming asylum “for the past 2 years,” after officers examined her phone and found a history of searches on the topic, according to a CBP officer. Her attorneys argue she is being punished for her honesty.

“If she did not disclose the fear that she was having about persecution in her country, she could have still entered on the tourist visas,” said Eden Heilman, Gyasi’s lead attorney with the ACLU of Virginia. “Unfortunately, because she was honest and shared her concerns, that’s what funneled her into this separate asylum-seeker category.”

After an immigration judge denied her asylum request on Wednesday, making it virtually impossible for Gyasi and her son to remain in the country, her legal team shifted focus to her well-being.

“We were very pleased that the judge recognized one fundamental principle, which is that human beings should not be detained under the conditions our client was being detained at Dulles Airport in a windowless room without access to appropriate food or medical care,” said Mary Bauer, executive director of the ACLU of Virginia.

Although Gyasi’s hopes that she and her son could remain in the United States were dashed, the judge insisted on one thing: no more nights in a windowless room.

“She’s not gonna spend tonight at Dulles,” Brinkema reiterated at the end of the hearing.

The World Bank has approved a $500 million financing package to support the rehabilitation and maintenance of at least 1,000 kilometers of rural agricultural and market access roads across Ghana.

The Ghana Market Access and Connectivity Project (GMACP) aims to address long-standing challenges posed by poor road infrastructure in rural areas, which have limited farmers’ access to markets, increased transportation costs, and contributed to high post-harvest losses.

The project is expected to directly benefit over 550,000 people by improving connectivity, reducing travel times, and strengthening agricultural value chains.

World Bank Division Director for Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, Robert Taliercio, described the initiative as a major step toward enhancing rural livelihoods and economic resilience.

“This project will improve access to markets and opportunities for rural communities while strengthening Ghana’s agricultural competitiveness,” he said.

The project is also projected to generate more than 5,000 direct jobs and over 25,000 indirect jobs through construction and road maintenance activities.

The initiative, which will be implemented by Ghana’s Ministry of Roads and Highways, incorporates climate-resilient designs to ensure long-term durability of the roads and drainage systems.

We have curated the most relevant and impactful stories from across Ghana today to keep you updated. Stay informed.

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