Eight individuals from Nepal, who had entered the United States illegally without a visa through the Mexico border, were repatriated and landed in Kathmandu on Thursday, February 22nd, 2024, using a chartered flight.
Superintendent of Nepal Police Gyanendra Prasad Phuyal, spokesperson for the Human Trafficking Investigation Bureau of Nepal Police, confirmed the deportation. The eight individuals, deemed ineligible to remain in the US, were apprehended by authorities and returned to their home country.
While they have reunited with their families, questions linger about the circumstances that led them to leave Nepal and enter the US illegally. Nepal’s authorities are currently investigating the details of their journey.
In adherence to U.S. law, noncitizens arriving without a legal basis to stay in the United States are promptly processed and removed.
Between May 12, 2023, and February 7, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has executed the removal or return of over 530,000 individuals, with the majority having crossed the Southwest Border, including more than 88,000 family members. Over the past three years, the majority of individuals encountered at the southwest border have been effectively removed, returned, or expelled, surpassing annual figures since 2013.
Noncitizens entering removal proceedings have the opportunity to present their claims for relief or protection from removal before immigration judges in the immigration courts administered by the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review. For security reasons, ICE does not disclose details of future or pending transportation operations.
ICE Air Operations plays a crucial role in facilitating the transfer and removal of noncitizens, including family units, through commercial airlines and chartered flights to support ICE field offices and other DHS initiatives. In fiscal year 2023, ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted 142,580 removals and 62,545 Title 42 expulsions to over 170 countries worldwide.