Latest news with #VenezuelanPrisoners
Irish Times
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
US pushing African countries to take in Venezuelan deportees, Nigeria says
The US government has pushed African countries to accept Venezuelan deportees, including some newly released from prison, Nigeria 's foreign minister has said. Yusuf Tuggar said the Trump administration had put 'considerable pressure' on countries to accept the deportees, but warned that it would be 'difficult' for Nigeria to accommodate any. 'The US is mounting considerable pressure on African countries to accept Venezuelans to be deported from the US, some straight out of prison,' Mr Tuggar told Nigerian broadcaster Channels TV. 'It would be difficult for a country like Nigeria to accept Venezuelan prisoners into Nigeria ... we have enough problems of our own ... for crying out loud,' he added. Mr Tuggar did not say on which countries the US had applied pressure, but Mr Trump hosted five African leaders at the White House this week. [ ICE, the drug cartel and human punching bags - the extraordinary fall of a Mexican world boxing champion Opens in new window ] The White House has been approached for comment. The leaders of Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania and Senegal met the US president for a televised lunch on Wednesday, which focused on trade and investment opportunities. At the event, Mr Trump said he also hoped to 'make progress on ... safe, third-country agreements' for deported migrants. Liberia's foreign minister on Thursday told the BBC his country had not had any discussions with the US about accepting 'deportees or criminals'. The Trump administration has launched an aggressive crackdown on immigration since returning to power, and has promised to launch the biggest mass deportation of undocumented migrants in US history. The US supreme court last month paved the way for the US government to deport migrants to so-called 'third countries' that were willing to accept them, rather than their own countries. Venezuela , led by the authoritarian Nicolás Maduro , has a difficult relationship with the US and has in the past refused to accept the forced return of its own citizens. Migration experts say other countries also at times refuse to accept their citizens deported from the US, as that might signal subservience to Washington. This week, eight US deportees arrived in South Sudan . Only one of the eight is a citizen of the country, with the rest reported to be from Asia and Latin America. Mr Trump has promised mass deportations while implementing measures including seeking to limit birthright citizenship and declaring a national emergency at the US-Mexico border. In March the US government sent hundreds of alleged Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador, whose president Nayib Bukele agreed to hold them in the country's prisons. Since Mr Trump re-entered the White House in January, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has deported more than 200,000 people in a nationwide sweep that has triggered huge protests in more than a dozen large US cities. - Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2025
BBC News
11-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Why Trump wan deport migrants to Nigeria plus oda oda third world kontris - and if e do am?
Nigeria don accuse di US of pressuring African kontris to take in Venezuelan deportees. Di West African kontri minister of foreign affairs Yusuf Tuggur on Channels TV on Thursday, 10 July claim say, di US goment dey pressure Nigeria to accept 300 Venezuelan deportees into di kontri, as e suggest say di recent visa restrictions on Nigerian travellers by di US no be "reciprocal" but pressure tactic. "Di US dey mount considerable pressure on African kontris to accept Venezuelans wey dem wan deport from di US, some of dem na straight out of prison," Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar tok. Dis dey come as international media report say Oga Trump on Wednesday, 9 July ask di presidents of Liberia, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania and Gabon wey dey for US for official visits to take in illegal migrants from oda kontris. Oga Tuggar don tok say Nigeria "no go be dumping ground for Venezuelan prisoners deported from di US". "We get enough problems of our own; we no fit accept Venezuelan deportees to Nigeria. We already get 230 million pipo," e tok. Earlier dis week, di US Department of State tok say part of a "global reciprocity realignment", nearly all non-immigrant and non-diplomatic visas dem dey issue to citizens of Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon and Ethiopia, go now be single-entry and valid for only three months. Why Oga Trump dey deport migrants from di US go third kontris One cornerstone of US President Donald Trump immigration policy na to remove unlawful migrants comot di kontri plus di promise of "mass deportations". And since e take office on 20 January, Oga Trump don announce plenty immigration-related executive orders, wey give way for widespread effort to crack down on undocumented migrants for di US. In more dan 21 actions, Trump don move to overhaul parts of di US immigration system, wey include how dem dey process and deport migrants from di US. According to one New York Times review of U.S. government documents, di administration don ask and dem dey plan to ask nearly sixty kontris to take deportees wey no be dia citizens. Many of these kontris, most of which be Africa, dey subject to one new full or partial travel ban to di United States, or dem dey considered for one. Reports also say Oga Trump bin ask di five African presidents, di presidents of Liberia, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania and Gabon – wey dey America for official visits – to take in illegal migrants from oda kontris. US Solicitor General John Sauer say di goment no dey fit deport violent criminal migrants go dia homelands as those kontris dey refuse to accept dem, which e say allow dem to stay for di US "victimising law-abiding Americans". Di US get right to deport migrants go third kontris? For June, US Supreme Court bin clear way for President Donald Trump administration to resume deportations of migrants to oda kontris wey no be dia own kontri. By 6-3, di justices bin reverse one lower court order wey require di govment to give migrants "meaningful opportunity" to tell officials di risks dem fit face if dem deport dem go third kontri. Di case bin involve eight migrants from Myanmar, South Sudan, Cuba, Mexico, Laos and Vietnam, wey dem deport for May on one plane wey dey go for South Sudan. Di Trump administration bin tok say dem be "di worst of di worst". Di Supreme Court bin allow Trump to end Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelan nationals, wey affect about 350,000 migrants. For anoda ruling for May, di justices say di president fit temporarily pause one humanitarian programme wey allow nearly half a million migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela to stay for di US for two years. Di Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for statement say wit dis decision, DHS go finally fit exercise dia undisputed authority to deport criminal illegal aliens–wey dia home kontri reject go third countries wey don agree to accept dem. Third kontris US dey reason to send deportees go and di once wey don accept deported migrants Nigeria Nigeria goment don confam say dem dey face pressure from US to accept deported migrants from Venezuela. Di kontri foreign minister Yusuf Tuggar wey announce dis informate tok say Nigeria get "enough problems" of dia own and no go host foreign prisoners from di US. Di minister add say Nigeria no go bow to pressure from di Trump administration to accept Venezuelan deportees from America. Liberia According to reports, Liberia fit dey consider US proposal to accept pipo wey di America deport, including criminals. Reports say Liberia wey get close historical links to America, dey part of one proposed list of kontris wey di US don appraoch. South Sudan South Sudan bin take in eight convicted deportees from di US on 5 July, but only one was South Sudanese. Di rest of dem na citizens of Myanmar, Cuba, Vietnam, Laos and Mexico. Pipo see di decision as attempt to soothe Washington sake of di punitive travel restrictions dem impose afta Juba refuse to receive South Sudanese deported from di US. Rwanda Rwanda goment and Trump administration dey discuss details about a potential agreement for Kigali to accept deportees from di U.S. wey include Africans and oda non-Rwandan nationals, BBC partner for US CBS News learn. Decisions on potential financial compensation for taking in di deportees plus oda details still dey ground according to one Rwandan official, wey confam am to CBS News. CBS News report say one US official and one Rwandan official don confam say active toks dey about sending third-country deportees from America go di east African nation. During one televised Cabinet meeting event for May, Secretary of State Marco Rubio bin say dem dey actively look for oda kontris to take in migrants expelled from di US. Na Washington Post bin first report di Rwanda arrangements, wey also cite one work by independent journalist Marisa Kabas, she bin discover one recent deportation of one Iraqi national from di US to Rwanda. Costa Rica For February, Costa Rica bin announce say dem go receive migrants from oda kontris wey di United States dey deport afta one deal wey di two kontris strike. "Di Government of Costa Rica don agree to collabo wit di United States in di repatriation of 200 illegal immigrants to dia kontri," di Costa Rican president office bin tok for statement, and add say "these pipo originate from ... Central Asia and India." Among di deportees na more dan 80 children, di Costa Rica goment bin shelter dem for di Temporary Migrant Care Centre (Catem), south of di capital, San José. Panama For February 2025, di Trump administration bin deport non-Panamanian migrants from US custody to Panama. Dem bin deport more dan 200 migrants from India, China, Uzbekistan, Iran, Vietnam, Turkey, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka go di kontri. According to one MOU wey di two kontris sign, di US goment go provide approximately $14 million give di government of Panama to deport or expel illegal migrants wey no get legal grounds to remain for dia kontri.
Japan Times
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Lawyers say new evidence challenges Trump on El Salvador prisons
Lawyers for Venezuelans sent to a prison in El Salvador say new evidence "contradicts' the U.S. government's assertions that Salvadoran officials, not the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, have legal authority over the men. Attorneys on Monday filed a copy of statements that El Salvador submitted to a United Nations human rights office in April, stating that "the jurisdiction and legal responsibility' for detainees "lie exclusively' with the United States under agreements between the two countries. The U.S. government, however, has repeatedly insisted it had no control over the Venezuelan prisoners once they were turned over to El Salvador. That position was backed by a federal judge in Washington, who ruled in June that the detainees were no longer in the "constructive custody' of the U.S. "The documents filed with the court today show that the administration has not been honest with the court or the American people,' Skye Perryman, president of Democracy Forward, one of the groups representing the Venezuelans, said in a statement. The case is one of the highest-profile challenges to the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration. The Venezuelan men, who the U.S. claim are gang members, were sent to El Salvador's notorious Terrorism Confinement Center, a facility denounced by human rights groups. A spokesperson for the State Department declined to comment, nor did public information officers for the office of El Salvador's president and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg relied on a May declaration from a senior State Department official stating that "the detention and ultimate disposition of those detained in CECOT and other Salvadoran detention facilities are matters within the legal authority of El Salvador.' Lawyers for the Venezuelans argue the new evidence from the U.N. undermines that statement. The April documents were part of a probe into says El Salvador was responsible for the disappearance of people sent to its prisons from the United States. El Salvador denied wrongdoing. It wasn't immediately clear how the latest filing will affect the case. The Venezuelans' lawyers suggested they could ask the judge's permission to gather more information from the government. The case is before a federal appeals court on the government's challenge to another part of Boasberg's June order requiring that the Venezuelans in El Salvador be given an opportunity to contest their removal.
