USA – US immigration authorities last year deported the largest number of undocumented immigrants in nearly a decade, surpassing the record of Donald Trump’s first term in office. More than 271,000 immigrants were deported from the US over the last fiscal year, according to a report released by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency on Thursday.

The ICE report comes just weeks before President-elect Trump, who plans to make mass deportation a cornerstone of his incoming administration, takes office. President Joe Biden in 2021 had pledged to pause deportations, but his administration ended up expanding it following a surge in border crossings.

In the newly released report, ICE said the steep climb in deportations last fiscal year was partly the result of a streamlined process. More deportations flights went to further away destinations, including Africa and Asia, which did not accept US deportations for years, the agency said. A majority of the deportations in fiscal year 2024 involved migrants apprehended by border officials compared to those ICE arrested in the US interior. Roughly 82% of the 271,000 immigrants deported that year were arrested by border agents. President-elect Trump has vowed to launch the “largest deportation operation in history” when he returns to office on 20 January. (BBC)