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The Department of Homeland Security says that any illegal immigrants arriving by boat, together with from Haiti, face “immediate repatriation” – amid brewing considerations a few potential migrant wave coming from the conflict-plagued nation.
In a press release to Fox News Digital, DHS stated it’s “monitoring the situation in Haiti and coordinating closely with the State Department and international partners.”
The Caribbean nation has seen a big escalation in violence as gangs have overrun the capital, burning police stations and attacking the principle airport. Gangs have additionally raided a few of the largest prisons, releasing hundreds of inmates.
Masked members of “G9 and Family” gang stand guard throughout a press convention by their chief Barbecue within the Delmas 6 neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, March 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
The elevated violence raises the potential for a brand new wave of migrants coming from the nation, each on the southern land border, the place migrants surged into Del Rio in 2021 within the hundreds, and by boat.
On Wednesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis introduced he’s sending troopers and officers, in addition to plane and boats to “protect” the state from vessels carrying illegal immigrants.
“Given the circumstances in Haiti, I have directed the Division of Emergency Management, the Florida State Guard, and state law enforcement agencies to deploy over 250 additional officers and soldiers and over a dozen air and seacraft to the southern coast of Florida to protect our state,” he stated.
In its assertion, DHS harassed that migration flows by way of the Caribbean “remain low.”
“All irregular migration journeys, especially maritime routes, are extremely dangerous, unforgiving, and often result in loss of life. DHS will continue to enforce U.S. laws and policy throughout the Florida Straits and the Caribbean region,” a spokesperson stated.
The spokesperson additionally harassed that these caught at sea can be instantly returned.
A U.S. Coast Guard boat pulls up subsequent to a sailboat containing roughly 150 migrants on July 21, 2022, in Islandia, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
“U.S. policy is to return noncitizens who do not have a fear of persecution or torture or a legal basis to enter the United States. Those interdicted at sea are subject to immediate repatriation pursuant to our longstanding policy and procedures. The United States returns or repatriates migrants interdicted at sea to The Bahamas, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti.”
According to the U.S. Coast Guard, 65 migrants have been repatriated on Tuesday after the company stopped a boat close to the Bahamas. So far, the Coast Guard has repatriated 131 migrants this fiscal yr.
The administration has stated it’s implementing “consequences” for illegal entry whereas increasing what it says are lawful migrant pathways. Haitians are additionally eligible for a controversial parole program that permits as much as 30,000 nationals from Haiti, in addition to Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, to fly into the U.S. every month.
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On Tuesday, Rebecca Zimmerman, assistant secretary of protection for Homeland Defense and Hemispheric Affairs, informed lawmakers that the Pentagon is “alert” to the potential for a mass migration occasion, nevertheless it has additionally not but seen massive numbers.
“I think you’re right that the driving conditions in Haiti could very well press more people,” she informed Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla. “We recently approved some additional assistance we could provide to the Coast Guard.”
Fox News’ Bradford Betz and Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.
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