Friday night started out for Ismail Hussein like most others have for the past two years.
He was in his room at the Park Hotel in the Melbourne suburb of Carlton, where he and dozens of other refugees and asylum seekers have been living in a state of limbo.
"I was laying on my bed," the 30-year-old said.
"Depressed, I had no hope.
"And then all of a sudden, two security guards came into my room. And then they informed me that Australian Border Force [ABF] are downstairs and they want to meet with me."
He said the ABF officers told him he had 15 minutes to leave the hotel and that he would be getting a visa.
Mr Hussein is a Somali refugee who came to Australia by boat in late 2013, then spent years on Manus Island before being taken to makeshift hotel detention about two years ago.
He was brought to Australia from Manus Island under the short-lived Medevac laws after he developed diabetes, high blood pressure, anxiety and PTSD after six years on Manus Island.
He was one of a number of people released from immigration detention this weekend.
Multiple refugee advocates said in total, nine people from the Park Hotel, one person from the Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation (MITA) and three people from Brisbane Immigration Transit Accommodation (BITA) were released late on Friday.
It comes as refugee advocates said another man was released from the Brisbane Immigration Transit Accommodation on Monday into community detention.
The ABF refused to confirm how many people had been released or provide any detail on the reason for the action.
Mr Hussain said he was in shock as he was transported from the Park Hotel to MITA to fill out paperwork and then to temporary accommodation in Melbourne's western suburbs.
"There's no words that I can describe that feeling," he said.
But he also said it was "bittersweet" to know about 18 people remained behind at the Park Hotel, and many more remained in other immigration detention facilities.
"I see them when I was leaving, the sorrow in their eyes and how sad they are," he said.
Hossein Latifi is one of those left behind. He said he was experiencing a similar mix of emotions, torn between "very happy" for those released and "heartbroken" for those still inside.
"We've been here in this situation for two years, so [we are] like family. It's very hard," he said.
The Iranian asylum seeker has been in Melbourne for about two years, first at MITA and then at the Park Hotel for the past six months.
"I always try my best to be positive, but sometimes it's very hard when you're stuck in this situation for almost nine years," he said.
Detention feels like 'systematic torture'
Amin Afravi, 33, is an asylum seeker who has been detained at the Brisbane Immigration Transit Accommodation (BITA) for the past three years.
Mr Afravi said three asylum seekers – Saeed, Abed and Mohammad – were released from the detention centre at Pinkenba in Brisbane on Friday night.
"I'm so happy and excited for them. When I see someone like me who has been suffering for almost 10 years – in exactly the same situation I'm in – when I see that they've got relief, it makes me happy because they're a human being," he said.
Mr Afravi, an Iranian, said he and 12 other men remain in indefinite detention at BITA and it felt like "systematic torture".
"They're not telling us when we can leave and that's the thing that's killing us the most in detention. It's killing us slowly, each and every one of us," he said.
"It's modern slavery. You are enslaving people in detention.
"I'm sure that most of the people in Australia don't want to pay money to some people who are actually torturing innocent people in detention.
"That is your money, that is your taxes, that are going into the pockets of a couple of companies to torture innocent people like me and others in detention."
Out of the 'park prison', but no explanation why now
What has changed to prompt the release of the men remains unclear.
An ABF spokesperson said: "The Australian government's policies have not changed and illegal maritime arrivals will not be settled in Australia."
Mohammed Joy Miah and Muhammad Jamal were also released from the Park Hotel, which they dub the "park prison", on Friday night.
After fleeing Bangladesh by boat, he was on Nauru for six years before being taken to Australia for medical treatment. He said he was praying for freedom just before he got the news from ABF.
Speaking to the ABC outside the Park Hotel and just around the corner from his new temporary accommodation, Mr Miah became emotional when describing what it was like to be in the fresh air.
Mr Jamal said he felt like a bird who had been freed from a cage.
"I'm really excited, I'm very happy … but I'm feeling so sad for my friends," he said.
Mr Jamal and Mr Miah questioned why if they and others could be released, more remained behind.
Minister for Immigration Alex Hawke declined to comment and his office referred the ABC to the ABF statement.
When about 50 men were released in January last year, minister Peter Dutton said it was due to the cost of keeping them in the hotel accommodation.
There is a belief amongst some refugee advocates the decision is more to do with political pressure.
A temporary reprieve with 'no idea' where next
Also unclear is where many will go next.
Mr Jamal is on a community detention visa while he finalises a plan to be resettled in the US.
Mr Miah and Mr Hussein have been placed on the Bridging Visa E, also known as a final departure bridging visa, which lets people stay lawfully in Australia while they "make arrangements to leave, finalise your immigration matter or wait for an immigration decision".
"Individuals released from immigration detention are provided transitional support through the Status Resolution Support Services program including caseworker support, accommodation and financial assistance," the ABF spokesperson said.
Mr Hussain said he had been told those with temporary accommodation would have it for a few weeks.
They will then need to find new places to live, employment, and figure out which country will take them if Australia will not.
Mr Miah said friends had offered him a place to stay now he has been released, but admitted he had "no idea" what the future held.
The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre is one of a range of charities providing support for people after their release.
The centre's director of advocacy, Jana Favero, said the process was different in every case but many found it hard to find work even if their visa allowed it due to their uncertain status.
"With these recent releases, it does now mean that 210 people have been released from detention since December, 2020, which is fantastic," she said.
"But that leaves about 55 who do remain, and the approach … from the government has been really chaotic and shambolic."
From his new temporary home, Mr Hussein said he had no idea what his next steps would be.
"But after nine years of being detained, after nine years of not working, after nine years of not interacting with normal people, I know it's going to be very hard.
"But you know what, we don't have a choice."
