Mariam Soumah, a 23-year-old woman from Guinea, has not seen her newborn daughter Sabina in nine months after being deported from Belarus without her child. Soumah, who initially traveled to Belarus hoping to reach Europe, gave birth prematurely in November 2024, with Sabina weighing just 600 grams.
According to Soumah and rights groups, Belarusian authorities forced her onto a plane back to Guinea in August 2025 while her baby remained in intensive care and was later placed in an orphanage in Minsk. She has only been allowed two brief video calls since the separation.
Soumah described her ordeal to AFP, recalling how she was barred from seeing her daughter unless she paid a $33,000 medical bill and how immigration authorities denied her a visa extension. “I said I will only go back with my baby. I begged them, please, just let my baby recover and I will go home with her. They said no,” she said.
Human rights organizations, including Human Constanta, have condemned the actions as manipulative and illegal, noting that there was no formal ruling to remove Soumah’s parental rights. UN experts and Guinean diplomats have also expressed concern, calling the forced separation “extremely concerning.”
The Guinean embassy in Moscow, which oversees Belarus, said it is following the case with “great humanitarian concern” and has sought clarifications from Belarusian authorities. UNICEF Belarus has been informed and may provide humanitarian support for Sabina. Belarusian authorities have not responded to requests for comment.
Soumah’s case highlights the vulnerability of migrant mothers in Belarus and the broader risks faced by individuals navigating migration routes to Europe, particularly through Belarus, which the EU has accused of encouraging migrants to attempt entry via the country.
