Mexico refused to accept a U.S. deportation flight that was scheduled to land last night, U.S. defense officials said Friday. The flight, which was set to transport deportees, was canceled after Mexican authorities denied clearance to land, officials said.
Two other U.S. military C-17 planes carried approximately 80 immigrants each to Guatemala as part of ongoing deportation efforts, the officials confirmed. There are no additional deportation flights scheduled for today, though that could change, they said.
In New Jersey, local officials and immigrant rights advocates criticized federal immigration authorities for conducting a workplace raid in Newark without a warrant.
During a press conference, Mayor Ras Baraka said agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement entered the back of a small business in Newark, arresting three undocumented workers and detaining employees who are U.S. citizens.
“People were fingerprinted. Pictures of their IDs and faces were taken there,” Baraka said. “I was appalled, upset, angry that this would happen here in this state, in this country.”
The raid comes amid a surge in immigration arrests nationwide. ICE confirmed that the agency detained 538 individuals across the country on Thursday, doubling its daily average.
The increase in arrests is part of President Donald Trump’s push to enforce stricter immigration policies. His administration has pledged to carry out what Trump has called “the largest deportation program in American history.”
Reports of suspected immigration raids have also surfaced in cities such as Boston, further fueling concerns among immigrant communities and advocacy groups.
