diff --git a/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/content-batch-processor.ts b/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/content-batch-processor.ts
index 893a99e0..4744e9b7 100644
--- a/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/content-batch-processor.ts
+++ b/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/content-batch-processor.ts
@@ -12,6 +12,11 @@ import {
   ContentBatchConfig,
 } from "./util/types";
 import { findContentInOtherLocale } from "./util/find-content-in-other-locale";
+import {
+  findDeletedLinkedListReferences,
+  buildDeletedLinkedListMessage,
+} from "./util/detect-deleted-linked-list-references";
+import { fileOperations } from "core/fileOperations";
 import { Logs } from "core/logs";
 import { state } from "core/state";
 /******
@@ -24,6 +29,10 @@ import { state } from "core/state";
  */
 export class ContentBatchProcessor {
   private config: ContentBatchConfig;
+  // PROD-2306: lazily-built, lower-cased set of linked-list/container reference names
+  // that still exist in the source. Used to tell a *deleted* linked-list reference apart
+  // from a merely "missing" one when clarifying create failures.
+  private liveSourceContainerRefNames?: Set<string>;
 
   constructor(config: ContentBatchConfig) {
     this.config = {
@@ -32,6 +41,50 @@ export class ContentBatchProcessor {
     };
   }
 
+  /**
+   * PROD-2306: Build (and cache) the set of container/linked-list reference names still
+   * present in the source. When a source linked list is deleted, the pull removes its
+   * container file, so absence here is the signal that a reference is deleted-not-missing.
+   * Returns null when no source containers were pulled at all (e.g. containers out of scope),
+   * so we don't misreport every reference as deleted.
+   */
+  private getLiveSourceContainerRefNames(): Set<string> | null {
+    if (this.liveSourceContainerRefNames === undefined) {
+      const refNames = new Set<string>();
+      try {
+        const sourceFileOps = new fileOperations(this.config.sourceGuid);
+        const containers = sourceFileOps.readJsonFilesFromFolder("containers");
+        for (const container of containers) {
+          if (container?.referenceName) {
+            refNames.add(String(container.referenceName).toLowerCase());
+          }
+        }
+      } catch {
+        // Best-effort: if we can't read source containers, skip clarification.
+      }
+      this.liveSourceContainerRefNames = refNames;
+    }
+    return this.liveSourceContainerRefNames.size > 0 ? this.liveSourceContainerRefNames : null;
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * PROD-2306: If a failed content item references a linked list that was deleted in the
+   * source, replace the misleading server error (surfaced verbatim, e.g. "... does not
+   * exist") with a clear, actionable message. Detection is proactive — based on the
+   * reference being absent from the live source containers — rather than string-matching
+   * the server text.
+   */
+  private clarifyFailedItemError(contentItem: mgmtApi.ContentItem, originalError: string): string {
+    const liveRefNames = this.getLiveSourceContainerRefNames();
+    if (!liveRefNames) return originalError;
+
+    const deletedRefs = findDeletedLinkedListReferences(contentItem?.fields, liveRefNames);
+    if (deletedRefs.length === 0) return originalError;
+
+    const itemRefName = contentItem?.properties?.referenceName || "unknown";
+    return buildDeletedLinkedListMessage(itemRefName, deletedRefs, originalError);
+  }
+
   /**
    * Process content items in batches using saveContentItems API
    * NOTE: Content items should already be filtered by the caller using filterContentItemsForProcessing()
@@ -141,7 +194,8 @@ export class ContentBatchProcessor {
           })),
           failedItems: failedItems.map((item) => ({
             originalContent: item.originalItem,
-            error: item.error,
+            // PROD-2306: clarify the error when the item references a deleted linked list.
+            error: this.clarifyFailedItemError(item.originalItem as mgmtApi.ContentItem, item.error),
           })),
           publishableIds: publishableSuccessItems.map((item) => item.newId),
         };
diff --git a/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/util/detect-deleted-linked-list-references.ts b/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/util/detect-deleted-linked-list-references.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..bcb47278
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/util/detect-deleted-linked-list-references.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,73 @@
+/**
+ * PROD-2306: Detect when a content item references a linked list / linked container
+ * that has been DELETED in the source instance.
+ *
+ * Background: when a source linked list is deleted, the pull removes its container
+ * file (see download-containers.ts, which unlinks containers no longer returned by
+ * the source). The linked-list reference, however, still lives on any content item
+ * that pointed at it. The CLI (correctly) will not recreate a deleted container on
+ * the target, so the create fails and the Management API surfaces a misleading
+ * "Cannot create this item <name> does not exist" verbatim.
+ *
+ * These helpers let us proactively identify the deleted reference so we can emit a
+ * clear, actionable message instead of relying on / string-matching the server text.
+ */
+
+/**
+ * Recursively collect every linked-list / linked-container reference name found in a
+ * content item's fields. A linked-list field value carries a `referencename`
+ * (or `referenceName`) pointing at the container it links to.
+ */
+export function collectAllReferenceNames(fields: any): string[] {
+  const found = new Set<string>();
+
+  function walk(node: any): void {
+    if (!node) return;
+
+    if (Array.isArray(node)) {
+      for (const v of node) walk(v);
+      return;
+    }
+
+    if (typeof node === "object") {
+      const rn = (node as any).referencename ?? (node as any).referenceName;
+      if (typeof rn === "string" && rn.length > 0) {
+        found.add(rn);
+      }
+      for (const key of Object.keys(node)) {
+        walk((node as any)[key]);
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  walk(fields);
+  return Array.from(found);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Given a content item's fields and the set of linked-list/container reference names
+ * that still exist in the source (lower-cased), return the referenced names that are
+ * NOT present in the source — i.e. linked lists that were deleted in the source.
+ */
+export function findDeletedLinkedListReferences(fields: any, liveSourceContainerRefNames: Set<string>): string[] {
+  return collectAllReferenceNames(fields).filter((rn) => !liveSourceContainerRefNames.has(rn.toLowerCase()));
+}
+
+/**
+ * Build the clear, actionable error message for an item that failed because it
+ * references a deleted linked list. Keeps the original server error appended for
+ * triage context.
+ */
+export function buildDeletedLinkedListMessage(
+  itemReferenceName: string,
+  deletedRefNames: string[],
+  originalError: string
+): string {
+  const names = deletedRefNames.map((n) => `'${n}'`).join(", ");
+  const subject = deletedRefNames.length > 1 ? `deleted linked lists ${names}` : `a deleted linked list ${names}`;
+  return (
+    `Content item '${itemReferenceName}' references ${subject} — ` +
+    `clear the stale reference in the source or restore the list. ` +
+    `(original error: ${originalError})`
+  );
+}
diff --git a/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/util/tests/detect-deleted-linked-list-references.test.ts b/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/util/tests/detect-deleted-linked-list-references.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..c3252203
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/lib/pushers/content-pusher/util/tests/detect-deleted-linked-list-references.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+import {
+  collectAllReferenceNames,
+  findDeletedLinkedListReferences,
+  buildDeletedLinkedListMessage,
+} from "../detect-deleted-linked-list-references";
+
+describe("collectAllReferenceNames", () => {
+  it("returns empty array for null/undefined/empty", () => {
+    expect(collectAllReferenceNames(null)).toEqual([]);
+    expect(collectAllReferenceNames(undefined)).toEqual([]);
+    expect(collectAllReferenceNames({})).toEqual([]);
+  });
+
+  it("collects referencename (lowercase) and referenceName (camelCase)", () => {
+    const fields = {
+      cards: { referencename: "winnersgallery_linkcard", fulllist: true },
+      other: { referenceName: "another_list" },
+    };
+    expect(collectAllReferenceNames(fields).sort()).toEqual(["another_list", "winnersgallery_linkcard"]);
+  });
+
+  it("collects references regardless of fulllist flag", () => {
+    const fields = { link: { referencename: "some_list", fulllist: false } };
+    expect(collectAllReferenceNames(fields)).toEqual(["some_list"]);
+  });
+
+  it("dedupes repeated reference names", () => {
+    const fields = [{ referencename: "dup" }, { referencename: "dup" }];
+    expect(collectAllReferenceNames(fields)).toEqual(["dup"]);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("findDeletedLinkedListReferences", () => {
+  it("returns references not present in the live source container set", () => {
+    const fields = {
+      a: { referencename: "winnersgallery_linkcard_deleted" },
+      b: { referencename: "live_list" },
+    };
+    const live = new Set(["live_list"]);
+    expect(findDeletedLinkedListReferences(fields, live)).toEqual(["winnersgallery_linkcard_deleted"]);
+  });
+
+  it("is case-insensitive against the live set", () => {
+    const fields = { a: { referencename: "Live_List" } };
+    const live = new Set(["live_list"]);
+    expect(findDeletedLinkedListReferences(fields, live)).toEqual([]);
+  });
+
+  it("returns empty when all references are live", () => {
+    const fields = { a: { referencename: "live_list" } };
+    expect(findDeletedLinkedListReferences(fields, new Set(["live_list"]))).toEqual([]);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("buildDeletedLinkedListMessage", () => {
+  it("produces a clear, actionable message and preserves the original error", () => {
+    const msg = buildDeletedLinkedListMessage(
+      "winnersgallery_linkcard",
+      ["winnersgallery_linkcard_linke909a7"],
+      "Cannot create this item winnersgallery_linkcard_linke909a7 does not exist"
+    );
+    expect(msg).toContain("Content item 'winnersgallery_linkcard' references a deleted linked list");
+    expect(msg).toContain("'winnersgallery_linkcard_linke909a7'");
+    expect(msg).toContain("clear the stale reference in the source or restore the list");
+    expect(msg).toContain("original error: Cannot create this item");
+  });
+
+  it("uses plural wording for multiple deleted lists", () => {
+    const msg = buildDeletedLinkedListMessage("item", ["a", "b"], "err");
+    expect(msg).toContain("references deleted linked lists 'a', 'b'");
+  });
+});