Hyderabad, Nov. 11 -- A US deportation flight carrying at least nine Iranian nationals returned to Arizona after Pakistan reportedly refused to receive the group, disrupting Washington's plan to send them to Iran through a transit route.

The charter plane left Mesa, Arizona, shortly before 5 am local time on Tuesday, November 10, but returned about 30 minutes later. The passengers were subsequently taken back to an immigration detention facility, The New York Times reported.

In a post on X, The New York Times journalist Elian Peltier said Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesperson declined to comment on the aborted flight.

The Trump administration has been exploring the use of Pakistan as a transit point for deportations to Iran and Afgh...