U.S authorities have arrested 538 individuals in a large-scale operation targeting illegal immigrants, which saw hundreds of deportations just days into President Donald Trump’s second term.
According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, the deportations were carried out using military aircraft, marking what she described as “the largest massive deportation operation in history.”
Leavitt emphasized that the operation fulfilled Trump’s campaign promises to crack down on illegal immigration.
The president has continued to prioritize immigration reform, signing executive orders declaring a “national emergency” at the southern border and deploying more troops to assist with enforcement.
Earlier in the week, Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka condemned an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid, where undocumented residents and even some citizens were detained without warrants.
Additionally, the Republican-led U.S. Congress recently approved a bill to expand pretrial detention for foreign criminal suspects, further tightening immigration policies.
