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US sends first deportation flight to Haiti after ending Temporary Protected Status

An ICE charter carrying 161 people landed in Cap-Haïtien following a Supreme Court ruling permitting the termination of protections.

The short version

  • U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted its first removal flight to Haiti since Temporary Protected Status (TPS) was ended for over 350,000 Haitians.
  • A flight carrying 161 passengers departed Louisiana and arrived at Cap-Haïtien Airport, where officials reported the passengers were released.
  • The operation follows a June Supreme Court order allowing the administration to terminate TPS designations for Haiti and several other nations.
  • It remains unconfirmed whether any of the individuals aboard the flight were former TPS recipients.

Key facts

  • An ICE deportation flight carrying 161 passengers flew from Alexandria, Louisiana, to Cap-Haïtien Airport on Thursday.[ABC News]
  • This marked the first U.S. deportation flight to Haiti since the administration ended TPS for more than 350,000 Haitians.[ABC News]
  • A June U.S. Supreme Court decision enabled the administration to conclude TPS protections for Haiti, Ethiopia, Somalia, Syria, and Myanmar.[ABC News]
  • Cuban officials stated that all 161 passengers on the flight were released upon arrival.[ABC News]
  • A separate third-country deportation flight arrived in Liberia on the same day under a new bilateral removal agreement.[ABC News]

What remains uncertain

  • Whether any of the 161 passengers on the Cap-Haïtien flight were former TPS recipients has not been confirmed.[ABC News]

Sources