ICE ramps up deportations to third countries with minimal notice

The Trump administration has significantly escalated immigration enforcement by employing a 1996 law to detain immigrants without bond hearings and by increasing deportations to 'third countries' where migrants often have no ties. ICE acting director Todd Lyons issued a memo allowing immediate deportations to alternative countries, sometimes with as little as six hours' notice and without diplomatic assurances of safety, a policy defended by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem. This marks a sharp departure from prior U.S. practices, with migrants being sent to places like South Sudan and El Salvador, raising concerns about potential human rights abuses. Concurrently, the Department of Justice under Trump has dramatically increased denaturalization cases targeting naturalized citizens convicted of serious crimes, expanding the scope beyond terrorism and war crimes to include procedural errors during naturalization. Legal experts and immigration advocates warn these efforts risk violating due process rights and could have profound impacts on naturalized Americans. Together, these policies reflect a broader, more aggressive approach to immigration enforcement under the current administration, drawing significant scrutiny over legal and humanitarian grounds.