Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are set to begin conducting raids of thousands of illegal immigrants across the U.S. beginning Sunday, The New York Times reports, just weeks after President Trump delayed the operation to give Congress time to develop a bipartisan solution to the border crisis.
At least 2,000 immigrants who have already been given deportation orders will be targeted, according to the report, but “collateral” deportations may also occur.
The raids, which will be conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement over multiple days, will include “collateral” deportations, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the preliminary stage of the operation. In those deportations, the authorities might detain immigrants who happened to be on the scene, even though they were not targets of the raids.
When possible, family members who are arrested together will be held in family detention centers in Texas and Pennsylvania. But because of space limitations, some might end up staying in hotel rooms until their travel documents can be prepared. ICE’s goal is to deport the families as quickly as possible. (The New York Times)
The raids are reportedly scheduled to take place in at least 10 major U.S. cities. June’s raid was expected to target Chicago, Baltimore, New York, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, and more.
Trump warned last month if Congress couldn’t find a solution to the immigration crisis the deportations would begin.
At the request of Democrats, I have delayed the Illegal Immigration Removal Process (Deportation) for two weeks to see if the Democrats and Republicans can get together and work out a solution to the Asylum and Loophole problems at the Southern Border. If not, Deportations start!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 22, 2019