First deportation plane flies former TPS holders back to Haiti
Migrants from Haiti cross the Rio Grande, on the border of Ciudad Acuna, Mexico, in 2021. On Friday, the Department of Homeland Security sent its first deportation flight to Haiti after the administration ended temporary protected status for 300,000 Haitians in the United States. File Photo by Miguel Sierra/EPA
Aug. 21 (UPI) — The U.S. government sent its first deportation flight to Haiti since the administration ended the temporary protected status of hundreds of thousands of Haitians.
A flight carrying 161 passengers left Alexandria, La., Thursday and landed at Cap Haitien Airport, ABC News reported. All of the passengers were released, according to Cuban officials. The Hill reported that some aboard the plane were former TPS holders. The administration has deported Haitians before, but this is the first since TPS was removed.
The State Department lists Haiti as a “Level 4: Do Not Travel,” for Americans.
“Do not travel to Haiti for any reason. U.S. citizens are at risk due to crime, terrorism, kidnapping, unrest and limited health care,” the site says. Haiti has been in a national state of emergency since 2024.
Hundreds of Haitian immigrants in Ohio were summoned by the Department of Homeland Security for in-person check-ins, and some were given ankle monitors, ABC reported.
The U.S. Supreme Court in June ended TPS protection for more than 350,000 Haitians, leading to the end of protections for Ethiopia, Somalia, Syria, Myanmar and more.
On Thursday, the first third-country deportation flight landed in Liberia.