WASHINGTON D.C.
From December 26 to 29, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), conducted removal flights to Central America, Cuba, Haiti, and Venezuela, officials announced Friday.
These flights included both single adults and family units, according to authorities.
If a noncitizen arrives and has no legal basis to remain in the U.S. they are processed and removed quickly, consistent with U.S. law, according to federal authorities.
Click Here to Read the 2023 Report: ICE releases fiscal year 2023 annual report
In keeping with standard practice, the federal government ensures that all noncitizens without a legal basis to remain in the U.S. are screened adequately for valid protection claims and withholding of removal following our laws and U.S. international obligations.
Officials stated that this applies to all noncitizens, regardless of nationality, to ensure the orderly and humane processing, transfer, and removal of single adults and family units.
In the last two weeks, more than thirty flights have been used for repatriation, returning thousands of people to their home countries and over 5,000 people directly to Mexico.
Since May 12, officials stated that DHS has removed or returned over 460,000 individuals, the vast majority of whom crossed the Southwest Border, including more than 75,000 individual family members.
In seven months, this nearly exceeds the number removed and returned in FY19 and exceeds the number of removals and returns in each fiscal year from 2015-2018.
Daily removals and enforcement returns are nearly double compared to the pre-pandemic average (2014-2019).
The Executive Office for Immigration Review of the Justice Department oversees the immigration courts, where noncitizens who are in removal proceedings present their requests for relief or protection from removal to immigration judges, officials stated.
Due to operational security reasons, ICE does not confirm or discuss future or pending transportation operations.
ICE Air Operations facilitates the transfer and removal of noncitizens, including family units, via commercial airlines and chartered flights in support of ICE field offices and other DHS initiatives.
In fiscal year 2023, ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted 142,580 removals and 62,545 expulsions to more than 170 countries worldwide.
B-roll for removal flights is available on DVIDS.
DHS has made additional videos available to the public and the media including b-roll footage of removal flights, a public service announcement, and testimonials from migrants who have been removed.