Record numbers of undocumented immigrants have been deported in the last two months, official figures show. The number of removals has exceeded the total for all years since 2011.
The total number of people removed has already surpassed 742,000, a significant increase compared to the fiscal year 2023 (October 2022 to September 2023), during which 142,580 people were removed, along with 62,545 expulsions under Title 42 before the order was revoked in May 2023.
In recent weeks, removal flights have taken immigrants back to Central America, China, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, and Peru.
“If a non-citizen arrives and has no legal basis to remain in the United States, they will be processed and removed quickly, according to U.S. law,” ICE said in its statement on Friday (12).
From July 2023 to May 2024, 2,377,158 people were encountered at the southwest border, with the number of removals being about 31% of that total.
ICE stated that the U.S. processes all non-citizens to determine if they have a legal basis to remain in the country before deciding whether to remove them or not.
Under the Biden administration, deportations have increased by at least 1.1 million since 2021. In early July, the Department of Homeland Security conducted its first major charter flight to China, as more and more Chinese nationals attempt to enter through the U.S.-Mexico border.
By July 2, about 120 repatriation flights to 20 countries had occurred since early June, when the president issued an executive order restricting immigrants from applying for asylum.
Donald Trump and the Republican Party promise to further increase deportations if they regain the White House and both chambers of Congress this November.
Source: Newsweek