The Department of Homeland Security said on Wednesday that the United States has deported approximately 131 Central Asian migrants who were in the US illegally to Uzbekistan, as part of a deal between the two countries.
The department stated that those deported were from Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan, adding that they were flown out of the US on Wednesday.
“We look forward to continuing to work together with Uzbekistan on efforts to enhance our mutual security and uphold the rule of law,”; Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement.
DAILY POST reports that President Donald Trump has pledged to deport millions of immigrants who are in the US illegally as part of a far-reaching crackdown.
The president’s administration has reportedly established new routes to deport migrants to third countries in the Western Hemisphere, and recently removed an Iraqi man to Rwanda.
Meanwhile, Democrats and migrant advocates have said Trump’s aggressive deportation push has bypassed due process and split families, including a case involving a deported Cuban mother who said she was told she could not bring her breastfeeding one-year-old daughter with her.
Trump’s initial deportations were said to have remained lower than last year under his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, when high level of illegal immigration led to more rapid removals.
The White House and Uzbekistan’s embassy in Washington did not immediately make any comment on the development.
