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India Today
a day ago
- Politics
- India Today
ICE undergoes major leadership shakeup amid Trump's deportation push
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the federal agency tasked with enforcing immigration laws and deporting illegal immigrants, is undergoing a major staff reorganization as the Trump administration intensifies efforts to drastically ramp up a statement released Thursday, ICE announced key personnel changes at the top of both its Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) divisions, the two branches responsible for identifying, arresting, detaining, and removing individuals who are residing in the country Genalo, who had been serving as the acting director of ERO, is retiring and will transition into a special government employee role with the agency. Marcos Charles will step in as acting director of ERO. Meanwhile, Robert Hammer, the current acting chief of HSI, is being reassigned to ICE headquarters, with Derek Gordon named as the new acting head of said the leadership overhaul is intended to help the agency 'achieve President Trump and the American people's mandate of arresting and deporting criminal illegal aliens and making American communities safe.'The changes follow a high-profile interview earlier this week in which White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told Fox News the administration is targeting 3,000 ICE arrests per day — a nearly fivefold increase from the current average of 656. From January 20 to May 19, ICE reported 78,155 reorganization marks the latest in a string of high-level staffing changes since February as ICE prepares for what could be its largest operational expansion to number of enforcement officers has remained flat for years, and the agency continues to face shortages in detention space and deportation support its goals, the administration is seeking major new funding from Congress. The proposal calls for enough resources to remove up to 1 million undocumented immigrants annually, increase detention capacity to 100,000 beds, and add 10,000 new ICE officers and the agency prepares for the most aggressive immigration enforcement campaign of the Trump presidency, ICE officials argue the internal restructuring will enhance its readiness and deliver on the administration's hardline immigration promises.(With inputs from Associated Press)Trending Reel
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Supreme Court backs Trump move to end migrant protections
Law enforcement officers, including HSI and ICE agents, take people into custody at an immigration court in Phoenix, Arizona, US, May 21, 2025. PHOTO: REUTERS Listen to article The US Supreme Court on Friday let President Donald Trump's administration revoke the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan, Cuban, Haitian and Nicaraguan migrants living in the United States, bolstering the Republican president's drive to step up deportations. The court put on hold Boston-based US District Judge Indira Talwani's order halting the administration's move to end the immigration "parole" granted to 532,000 of these migrants by Trump's predecessor Joe Biden, potentially exposing many of them to rapid removal, while the case plays out in lower courts. Immigration parole is a form of temporary permission under American law to be in the country for "urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit," allowing recipients to live and work in the United States. Biden, a Democrat, used parole as part of his administration's approach to deter illegal immigration at the US-Mexican border. Trump called for ending humanitarian parole programs in an executive order signed on January 20, his first day back in office. The Department of Homeland Security subsequently moved to terminate them in March, cutting short the two-year parole grants. The administration said revoking the parole status would make it easier to place migrants in a fast-track deportation process called "expedited removal." As with many of the court's orders issued in an emergency fashion, Friday's decision, opens new tab was unsigned and gave no reasoning. Two of the nine-member court's three liberal justices, Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor, publicly dissented. The court botched its decision by failing to account for its impact, Jackson wrote in an accompanying opinion. The outcome, Jackson wrote, "undervalues the devastating consequences of allowing the government to precipitously upend the lives and livelihoods of nearly half a million noncitizens while their legal claims are pending." The case is one of many that Trump's administration has brought in an emergency fashion to the nation's highest judicial body seeking to undo decisions by judges impeding his sweeping policies, including several targeting immigrants. The Supreme Court on May 19 also let Trump end a deportation protection called temporary protected status that had been granted under Biden to about 350,000 Venezuelans living in the United States, while that legal dispute plays out. Biden starting in 2022 let Venezuelans who entered the United States by air request a two-year parole if they passed security checks and had a US financial sponsor. Biden expanded that to Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans in 2023 as his administration grappled with high levels of illegal immigration from those nationalities. A group of migrants granted parole and Americans who serve as their sponsors sued, claiming the administration violated federal law governing the actions of government agencies. Talwani in April found that the law governing such parole did not allow for the program's blanket termination, instead requiring a case-by-case review. The Boston-based 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals declined to put the judge's decision on hold. 'Traumatic impact' Guerline Jozef, executive director of Haitian Bridge Alliance, one of the plaintiffs, expressed dismay at Friday's decision. "Once again, the Trump administration blatantly proves their disregard for the lives of those truly in need of protection by taking away their status and rendering them undocumented. We have already seen the traumatic impact on children and families afraid to even go to school, church or work," Jozef said. The Justice Department told the Supreme Court that Talwani's order had upended "critical immigration policies that are carefully calibrated to deter illegal entry," effectively "undoing democratically approved policies that featured heavily in the November election" that returned Trump to the presidency. The plaintiffs told the Supreme Court they would face grave harm if their parole is cut short given that the administration has indefinitely suspended processing their pending applications for asylum and other immigration relief. Migrants with parole status reacted to Friday's decision with sadness and disappointment. Fermin Padilla, 32, waited two years in Chile to receive parole status and paid for his work permit. Court pauses ruling blocking end of parole for 532,000 migrants, risking deportation as legal battle continues "We complied with all the requirements the United States government asked for," said Padilla, who delivers Amazon packages. "Now I'm left without security because we don't know what will happen, we're without anything after so much sacrifice, it's not fair." Retired university professor Wilfredo Sanchez, 73, has had parole status for a year and a half, living in Denver with his daughter, a doctor and US citizen. "I was alone in Venezuela, with diabetes and hypertension," Sanchez said. "I have been relaxed here, happy with (my daughter), her husband and my grandkids. I have all my medical treatment up to date." "To return to Venezuela is to die, not just because of my medical conditions, but from loneliness," Sanchez added. Carlos Daniel Urdaneta, 30, has lived in Atlanta for three years with parole status, working in a restaurant, since coming to the United States to earn money to send to his ill mother in Venezuela. "If I have to work triple in my country, I will," said Urdaneta, whose wife and son are still in Venezuela. "I won't risk staying here undocumented with this government."
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First Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- First Post
US Supreme Court clears Trump's move to end legal status for 500,000 migrants
The court put on hold Boston-based US District Judge Indira Talwani's order halting the administration's move to end the immigration 'parole' granted to 532,000 of these migrants by Trump's predecessor Joe Biden read more Law enforcement officers, including HSI and ICE agents, take people into custody at an immigration court in Phoenix, Arizona, US, on May 21, 2025. Reuters File The US Supreme Court on Friday let President Donald Trump's administration revoke the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan, Cuban, Haitian and Nicaraguan migrants living in the United States, bolstering the Republican president's drive to step up deportations. The court put on hold Boston-based US District Judge Indira Talwani's order halting the administration's move to end the immigration 'parole' granted to 532,000 of these migrants by Trump's predecessor Joe Biden, potentially exposing many of them to rapid removal, while the case plays out in lower courts. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD As with many of the court's orders issued in an emergency fashion, the decision was unsigned and gave no reasoning. Two of the court's three liberal justices, Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor, publicly dissented. The court botched its assessment of whether the administration was entitled to freeze Talwani's decision pending the litigation, Jackson wrote in an accompanying opinion. The outcome, Jackson wrote, 'undervalues the devastating consequences of allowing the government to precipitously upend the lives and livelihoods of nearly half a million noncitizens while their legal claims are pending.' Immigration parole is a form of temporary permission under American law to be in the country for 'urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit,' allowing recipients to live and work in the United States. Biden, a Democrat, used parole as part of his administration's approach to deter illegal immigration at the U.S.-Mexican border. Trump called for ending humanitarian parole programs in an executive order signed on January 20, his first day back in office. The Department of Homeland Security subsequently moved to terminate them in March, cutting short the two-year parole grants. The administration said revoking the parole status would make it easier to place migrants in a fast-track deportation process called 'expedited removal.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The case is one of many that Trump's administration has brought in an emergency fashion to the nation's highest judicial body seeking to undo decisions by judges impeding his sweeping policies, including several targeting immigrants. The Supreme Court on May 19 also let Trump end a deportation protection called temporary protected status that had been granted under Biden to about 350,000 Venezuelans living in the United States, while that legal dispute plays out. In a bid to reduce illegal border crossings, Biden starting in 2022 allowed Venezuelans who entered the United States by air to request a two-year parole if they passed security checks and had a U.S. financial sponsor. Biden expanded that process to Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans in 2023 as his administration grappled with high levels of illegal immigration from those nationalities. The plaintiffs, a group of migrants granted parole and Americans who serve as their sponsors, sued administration officials claiming the administration violated federal law governing the actions of government agencies. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD GuerlineJozef, executive director of Haitian Bridge Alliance, one of the plaintiffs, expressed dismay at Friday's decision. 'Once again, the Trump administration blatantly proves their disregard for the lives of those truly in need of protection by taking away their status and rendering them undocumented. We have already seen the traumatic impact on children and families afraid to even go to school, church or work,' Jozef said. 'I cannot overstate how devastating this is: the Supreme Court has allowed the Trump administration to unleash widespread chaos, not just for our clients and class members, but for their families, their workplaces and their communities,' added Karen Tumlin, director of Justice Action Center, one of the groups representing the plaintiffs. Talwani in April found that the law governing such parole did not allow for the program's blanket termination, instead requiring a case-by-case review. The Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to put the judge's decision on hold. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In its filing, the Justice Department told the Supreme Court that Talwani's order had upended 'critical immigration policies that are carefully calibrated to deter illegal entry,' effectively 'undoing democratically approved policies that featured heavily in the November election' that returned Trump to the presidency. The plaintiffs told the Supreme Court they would face grave harm if their parole is cut short given that the administration has indefinitely suspended processing their pending applications for asylum and other immigration relief. They said they would be separated from their families and immediately subject to expedited deportation 'to the same despotic and unstable countries from which they fled, where many will face serious risks of danger, persecution and even death.' Talwani on Wednesday ordered the administration to resume processing applications for work permits or more lasting immigration status from migrants with parole status from Afghanistan, Latin America and Ukraine.
IOL News
2 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
South African homeowners shift towards off-grid living, ditching municipal services for sustainability
Solar installations on properties has been on the rise in South Africa. Image: Supplied More South African homeowners aspire to live off-grid, with many seeking to replace municipal and state-provided services-particularly electricity and water-in pursuit of greater sustainability and self-sufficiency. This is according to Absa's Homeowners Sentiment Index (HSI) for the first quarter of this year. More than three-quarters (76%) of respondents indicated a desire to move away from state-supplied electricity, while nearly half (49%) expressed interest in replacing municipal water sources. In parallel, households are said to be actively adopting more sustainable practices in their daily lives, with 57% cultivating fruit and vegetable gardens and 42% using solar power for electricity. A majority of homeowners (64%) are exploring borehole and filtration systems, while 53% are considering rainwater harvesting to improve water security. 'We're seeing households take a more proactive stance on sustainability, not just through energy and water alternatives, but also through lifestyle changes that signal a broader recalibration of what homeownership means in today's environment,' said Nondumiso Ncapai, managing executive at Absa Home Loans. First developed in 2015, the Absa HSI is an indicator of the overall state of consumer confidence in South Africa's property market. In this year's first quarter, the Index was expanded to include new questions exploring consumer perspectives on sustainable living and emerging trends likely to influence this in the future. Overall homeowner sentiment declined slightly by 2 percentage points to 85% in this period, down from 87% in the last quarter of last year. The dip reflects growing uncertainty around US policy direction and the South African Reserve Bank's decision not to implement a widely anticipated rate cut in March. Despite this, the current reading was said to remain the second-highest since the Index's inception a decade ago. Buying sentiment held steady at 77% in this year's first quarter, maintaining the gains recorded in the previous quarter. The average age of homebuyers continued to decline, with first-time buyers now entering the market at 38. Selling sentiment declined marginally to 49%, down from 51% in the last quarter of last year. Many sellers were said to still be adopting a wait-and-see approach, anticipating that they would get better prices in the future. Buy-versus-rent sentiment dropped by 4 percentage points in this year's first quarter. While many renters noted they had now saved enough for a deposit or sought more space, others continued to favour renting for its flexibility and perceived affordability. Renovation sentiment fell by 3 percentage points to 79%, with most homeowners citing value-adding improvements and quality-of-life enhancements as primary motivators. Rising input costs were said to remain a barrier for many. Investment sentiment held firm at 85%, sustaining its highest level on record since the Index began. While concerns around economic conditions and the country's long-term trajectory remain, property continues to be viewed as a resilient investment vehicle. At a provincial level, the highest overall homeowner sentiment was recorded in Limpopo (93%), the Free State (92%), marking its highest score on record, and the Northern Cape (92%). Migration trends continued to shape local dynamics with the Western Cape remaining a net beneficiary of inward migration, although the pace has slowed over the past three quarters. The Eastern Cape continued to record positive net migration, while KwaZulu-Natal has seen an uptick in outward migration. Ncapai said the sustained strength in overall sentiment, particularly in buying and investment confidence, signals not only the resilience of South African consumers, but also a growing optimism around a medium- to long-term recovery in property market activity. 'Despite near-term pressures, there is a clear belief that property remains a reliable store of value and a pathway to financial security. The momentum in positive sentiment over the last three quarters is expected to continue into the rest of 2025.' Timely relief for homeowners was signalled by the 0.25% interest rate announced on Thursday by the South African Reserve Bank's Monetary Policy Committee, which will hopefully act as a catalyst for first-time buyers entering the market, according to Paul Stevens, CEO of Just Property. 'The cut, along with lower-than-expected inflation numbers, should inject fresh momentum into the property market, lowering monthly bond repayments and improving affordability for first-time buyers and investors alike. "For Just Property clients, it may open the door to upgrades, refinancing or entering the market sooner,' Stevens said. The property company said that broadly, a cut will support economic activity, particularly in consumer-sensitive sectors like property and retail, although the SARB will be mindful of inflationary risks going forward. Independent Media Property
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First Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- First Post
Trump administration sets daily goal of 3,000 immigrant arrests for federal agents
The new measures mandate law enforcement agents, independent of ICE, to assist officials in making arrests and help them with other logistics read more Federal agents have been asked to arrest 3,000 immigrants a day, or over a million per year, as the Trump administration sets ambitious goals under its anti-immigration drive. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leaders, by Stephen Miller and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary, have announced the targets that have tripled in figures since last year. The high-level meeting, first reported by Axios, brought together officials from two distinct divisions within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS): Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD ERO handles immigration enforcement, including arrests, detentions, and deportations, while HSI is tasked with investigating transnational crimes such as drug trafficking, human smuggling, and online child exploitation. More from World Trump fury mounts on Harvard, White House moves to cancel $100 mn in funds The meeting, which was held on May 21, is the latest in moving federal officials to make more arrests nationwide as US President Donald Trump clamps down on immigration. The new measures mandate law enforcement agents, independent of ICE, to assist officials in making arrests and help them with other logistics. They will also make it possible for law enforcement officials to arrest migrants at locations that were once protected, like courthouses. Nayna Gupta, the policy director for the American Immigration Council, told The Guardian, 'This administration came into office with the illusion that they had been given a broad mandate to effectuate an aggressive immigration enforcement agenda, and they are doubling down now on that agenda.' Meanwhile, Tricia McLaughlin, the homeland security assistant secretary, said, " Under Secretary Noem, we are delivering on President Trump's and the American people's mandate to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens and make America safe.' Agents from the FBI, HSI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and other federal law enforcement agencies have been diverted from their usual duties to focus on immigration enforcement. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In a parallel development, ICE is undergoing a major staff reorganisation. Earlier this week, the agency announced leadership changes at the department tasked with finding, arresting and removing immigrants who no longer have the right to be in the country as well as at the agency's investigative division. Kenneth Genalo, who had been the acting director of Enforcement and Removal Operations, is retiring and will serve as a special government employee with ICE. Robert Hammer, who has been the acting head of Homeland Security Investigations, will transition to another leadership role at headquarters. With inputs from agencies
