Thousands of Africans returned home through an EU program. Many say they’ve been abandoned

When Oumar Bella Diallo boarded a plane home to the West African nation of Guinea in July, the weary 24-year-old thought his migration ordeal was over.

He had spent almost a year trying to reach Europe. He said he was attacked by police and scammed for money as he crossed Mali, Algeria and Niger, at one point limping past corpses in the desert. After seeing fellow migrants die from hunger and exhaustion, he gave up.

He is among tens of thousands of Africans returning home with the help of the International Organization for Migration, as Europe spends millions of dollars to deter migrants before they reach its shores. The European Union-funded IOM program pays for return flights and promises follow-up assistance.

But migrants tell The Associated Press that promises by the United Nations-affiliated organization are not fulfilled, leaving them to face trauma, debt and family shame on their own. Desperation