The administration announced a new deal to deport 1,200 migrants to Liberia as part of an immigration crackdown.
The administration announced a new deal to deport 1,200 migrants to Liberia as part of an immigration crackdown. The first group of twenty deportees arrived in Liberia on Thursday, marking the largest single third-country deportation arrangement pursued by the administration since President Trump returned to office. Under these agreements, the administration has deported thousands of people to nearly two dozen countries that are not their own. This practice is being used as a legal loophole to indirectly return asylum-seekers to their home countries. While many of the African nations involved are among the worst hit by the administration's policies, the Liberia-U.S. agreement includes a pledge of $124 million in assistance and an extension of visitor visas for Liberians. Immigration lawyers note that while the administration uses these deals to manage the flow of migrants, some deportees are sent to countries where they have no ties. In some cases, deportees with U.S. court-ordered protections were sent to third countries before being returned home, which rights advocates argue can be an effective way to bypass certain legal protections.