gh-pr-merge-in-worktrees

The gh pr merge --delete-branch command fails in git worktrees because the local branch deletion step encounters a branch-in-use error when the base branch is checked out in another worktree, even though the remote PR merge may have already succeeded.

To check if a GitHub PR merged after a worktree delete error, verify the PR state and mergedAt metadata on GitHub using the gh CLI, which confirms the merge succeeded independently of the local branch cleanup failure.

The safest way to delete a remote branch after a failed gh pr merge is to manually remove the remote branch using git push origin --delete, avoiding risky local branch deletion in multi-worktree setups where the base branch is active elsewhere.

Using gh pr merge --delete-branch in multi-worktree workflows often triggers errors because the command attempts local branch deletion while the branch is checked out in a sibling worktree, causing a fatal branch-in-use conflict during the cleanup phase.

Yes, gh pr merge --delete-branch operates in three distinct steps: merging the PR, deleting the local branch, and deleting the remote branch. A failure in branch cleanup does not mean the PR merge itself failed, as these steps are independent.

To recover from a fatal branch-in-use error during git worktree branch deletion, first confirm the GitHub PR merge succeeded by checking mergedAt metadata, then manually delete the remote branch without forcing local branch removal in the active worktree.