The first group of Haitian deportees under the Trump administration’s renewed removal program landed Tuesday at Cap-Haitien airport, marking the resumption of deportations to a nation grappling with widespread gang violence.
Among the returnees was Mario Montès, who spent nearly a year in the United States working in Alaska before being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials in Miami.
“Immigration officers told me to come to their office, saying there was new paperwork to complete because of the new president,” Montès said. “When I arrived, I saw handcuffs, and they informed me I would be sent back to my country.”
The deportations follow President Donald Trump’s recent executive orders on immigration enforcement after his return to the White House. The Department of Homeland Security reports approximately 7,300 individuals of various nationalities have been deported in the first week of his second term.
These removals come as Haiti faces escalating security challenges. Recent gang violence in an upscale Port-au-Prince neighborhood left at least 40 people dead. United Nations data shows gang-related violence claimed more than 5,600 lives across Haiti last year, with an additional 2,200 people injured. The ongoing crisis has displaced over one million residents, according to U.N. estimates.
Cap-Haitien’s airport remains the country’s sole operational aviation facility for international traffic, serving as the entry point for deportees returning to a nation in turmoil.
