Tag Archives: Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Rolling Stone: Trump Is Hiring ICE Agents to Arrest Immigrants Coast to Coast, Border to Border

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Job listings in 25 cities show where ICE may be ramping up deportations and detentions

Donald Trump is looking to hire 10,000 officers to help carry out his administration’s widespread detention and deportation of migrants with tens of billions of dollars in funds from his “Big Beautiful Bill.” 

Job postings show that in 25 cities from coast to coast, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is hiring deportation officers who will arrest, detain, and deport migrants, and manage migrants’ cases. The listings give insight into where ICE may be ramping up operations. ICE has already been carrying out broad arrests, including at workplaces and courthouses. Agents have been wearing masks and lacking identifying information as they snatch immigrants, sometimes breaking their car windows to drag them out faster. 

ICE has already been carrying out broad arrests, including at workplaces and courthouses. Agents have been wearing masks and lacking identifying information as they snatch immigrants, sometimes breaking their car windows to drag them out faster. 

If you’re big, dumb, stupid, and no older than 36, ICE wants you!

Racists, white supremacists, and the culturally deprived are encouraged to apply!

Trump Is Hiring ICE Agents to Arrest Immigrants Coast to Coast, Border to Border
ICE is hiring in 25 cities, suggesting where Donald Trump may be ramping up deportations and detentions.

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/trump-ice-agents-arrest-immigrants-cities-coast-border-1235399216

Raw Story: ‘You don’t have immunity’: Stephen Miller and ICE agents put on notice by legal expert

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U.S. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller walks away after speaking to reporters at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 30, 2025. REUTERS/Nathan Howard

Government employees who have been doing Donald Trump’s dirty work during his second term should take note that the president recently admitted they may not have immunity for their actions.

And that includes White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and ICE agents who have been assaulting and snatching immigrants off U.S. streets whether they are in the country legally or not.

That was a warning given by conservative attorney George Conway on MSNBC on Saturday morning where he talked about, among other topics, Trump’s appointees going up to the line and sometimes over thereby breaking the law.

Speaking with the hosts of “The Weekend,” Conway stated, “There’s no check against him anymore, there’s no checks. He actually, by the way, he was a lot more coherent a few years ago than yesterday, but let’s set that aside.”

“His mental acuity,” co-host Eugene Daniels interjected.

“Yeah, no,” Conway replied. “Everything is –– he’s a narcissist. He’s the most profoundly narcissistic individual we’ve ever seen in American politics. It’s all me, me, me, me, me, there is no other to him. The government belongs to him, he talks about his generals. It was always going to be his Justice Department and he was always going to view the Justice Department and the attorney general and everybody who works for the attorney general to the lowest US assistant, US attorney in the smallest district in the country.”

“And let me just say, I mean, it’s working for all these people who want these nice jobs, right, that they’re not qualified for, like Alina Habba and the guy in the Northern District of New York,” he added.

“But you know, Trump said something before the break in his incoherent way that, actually, the people who work for him now should remember,” he pointed out. “He [Trump] said that the people who work for Obama, they’re not protected by the immunity decision. Well, all you people who are getting those jobs right now working for Donald Trump, whether you be the lowliest ICE agent or Stephen Miller himself? You better watch it because you don’t have immunity.”

That earned him a “Wow!” from Jonathan Capehart.

‘You don’t have immunity’: Stephen Miller and ICE agents put on notice by legal expert

https://www.rawstory.com/stephen-miller-2673765097

Miami Herald: ‘Outright Lie’: Trump DHS Responds to ICE Criticism

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DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has pledged to prosecute those involved in doxing or violence against officers. Noem wrote, “We will prosecute those who dox ICE agents to the fullest extent of the law. These criminals are taking the side of vicious cartels and human traffickers.” She added, “We won’t allow it in America.”

…

Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin noted that department leaders have supported measures to protect ICE personnel. McLaughlin said, “ICE law enforcement are succeeding to remove terrorists, murderers, pedophiles and the most depraved among us from America’s communities, even as crazed rhetoric from gutter politicians are inspiring a massive increase in assaults against them. It is reprehensible that our officers are facing this threat while simply doing their jobs and enforcing the law.”

It’s really simple, bimbos: The reproduction of publicly available information is protected by the First Amendment. PERIOD. STOP. END OF SENTENCE.

If someone does his research on the internet and connects the dots on information available on public web sites, that information is public and can be freely shared.

Likewise, photography in a public place is also protected by the First Amendment. If someone happens to take a picture of one of your Gestapo ICE thugs in public, the taking and reproduction of that image is also protected by the First Amendment.

Suck it up, bitches! You’re on the losing side of this issue. The First Amendment rules!

The only “outright lies” here are coming from you and your cronies.



‘Outright Lie’: Trump DHS Responds to ICE Criticism

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/outright-lie-trump-dhs-responds-to-ice-criticism/ss-AA1JNcCH

Wichita Eagle: Trump Suffers Blow as Poll Reveals Disapproval

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Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in Los Angeles have reportedly expanded to target individuals without criminal histories. Officials claimed the broadening of enforcement has sparked fear throughout the community, causing residents to stay indoors and avoid public spaces. Mayor Karen Bass expressed concern over the raids, stating they have created a chilling effect that is affecting families and causing a decline in workforce participation.

A NPR/PBS News/Marist poll published in July found 52% of Americans disapprove of Trump’s current approach to immigration enforcement, a shift from earlier support for stricter policies. In contrast, a Gallup poll in 2024 showed 55% of Americans wanted less immigration.

The raids have drawn criticism from local advocacy groups, who argue they disrupt communities and undermine trust in law enforcement. Federal officials, however, defend the actions as necessary to enforce immigration laws and prioritize public safety. The increased enforcement comes amid ongoing national debates over immigration policy and border security.

Bass said, “Los Angeles is a city of immigrants — 3.8 million people and about 50% of our population is Latino. So when the raids started, fear spread. The masked men in unmarked cars, no license plate, no real uniforms, jumping out of cars with rifles and snatching people off the street.”

Local farmers have reported declines in activity due to the expanded ICE raids. Bass criticized agents’ use of masks and unmarked vehicles, saying it fuels fears of kidnappings.

Bass stated that ICE’s tactics are “leading a lot of people to think maybe kidnappings were taking place. How do you have masked men who then say, well, we are federal officials with no identification?”

…

Bass stated, “Let me tell you, we have a Los Angeles Police Department that has to deal with crime in this city every single day, and they’re not masked, they stay here. The masked men parachute in, stay here for a while and leave. So you enter a profession like policing, like law enforcement, I’m sorry, I don’t think you have a right to have a mask and snatch people off the street.”

Bass added, “It’s not just the deportation. It’s the fear that sets in when raids occur, when people are snatched off the street. Even people who are here legally, even people who are U.S. citizens, have been detained. Immigrants who have their papers and were showing up for their annual immigration appointment were detained when they showed up doing exactly what they were supposed to be doing.”

Trump Suffers Blow as Poll Reveals Disapproval

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/trump-suffers-blow-as-poll-reveals-disapproval/ss-AA1JMJWO

Washington Examiner: Federal court halts Trump’s asylum crackdown at US-Mexico border

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A panel of federal judges blocked President Donald Trump‘s day-one proclamation restricting asylum claims at the United States-Mexico border.

One of the first proclamations of Trump’s second term was Proclamation 10888—Guaranteeing the States Protection Against Invasion. The move forbade migrants from claiming asylum when crossing the border at any place outside a port of entry, and restricted requirements to claim asylum for those entering through said ports of entry. In July, U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss, an Obama appointee, ruled that Trump had exceeded his authority with the move.

The 3-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit put an administrative pause on Moss’s ruling, which was lifted after their decision Friday.

In his 128-page ruling, Moss argued that Trump’s unilateral moves violated the Immigration and Nationality Act, which provides the “sole and exclusive” means for deporting illegal immigrants. Trump’s proclamation had set up “an alternate immigration system” that violated the law, he claimed, rejecting the government’s argument that an out-of-control border necessitated the move.

“Nothing in the INA or the Constitution grants the President … the sweeping authority asserted in the Proclamation and implementing guidance,” Moss wrote. “An appeal to necessity cannot fill that void.”

Though he argued that an emergency doesn’t excuse the move, he seemed to cede that there was, in fact, an emergency.

“The Court recognizes that the Executive Branch faces enormous challenges in preventing and deterring unlawful entry into the United States and in adjudicating the overwhelming backlog of asylum claims of those who have entered the country,” Moss wrote. “But the INA, by its terms, provides the sole and exclusive means for removing people already present in the country.”

The White House was quick to respond, arguing that the ruling violated the recent Supreme Court decision limiting the ability of district judges to issue nationwide injunctions on federal government policies.

“A local district court judge has no authority to stop President Trump and the United States from securing our border from the flood of aliens trying to enter illegally. The judge’s decision — which contradicts the Supreme Court’s ruling against granting universal relief — would allow entry into the United States of all aliens who may ever try to come to in illegally,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement obtained by Politico.

Department of Homeland Security Spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin derided Moss as a “a rogue district judge” who was “threatening the safety and security of Americans.”

The Washington Examiner reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for further comment.

Moss’s ruling is the latest of several major legal moves against Trump’s immigration agenda. On Friday, U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb of the District of Columbia ruled that the Trump administration’s use of expedited removal exceeded the Department of Homeland Security’s legal authority.

Cobb blocked three actions from the Trump administration: a Jan. 23 DHS memo directing immigration officials to apply expedited removal as broadly as possible; a Feb. 18 ICE directive authorizing officers to consider expedited removal for “paroled arriving aliens”; and a March 25 DHS notice terminating the Biden-era parole programs for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans.

Federal court halts Trump’s asylum crackdown at US-Mexico border
A district judge blocked Trump’s day-one proclamation cracking down on asylum claims at the southern border.
Federal court halts Trump’s asylum crackdown at US-Mexico border

LA Times: Ohio city whose Haitian migrants were disparaged by Trump braces to defend them against deportation

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An Ohio city whose Haitian migrants were disparaged by a Donald Trump falsehood last year as he pitched voters on his plans for an immigration crackdown is now bracing to defend the community against possible deportation.

A group of about 100 community members, clergy and Haitian leaders in Springfield gathered this week for several days of training sessions as they prepare to defend potential deportees and provide them refuge.

“We feel that this is something that our faith requires, that people of faith are typically law-abiding people — that’s who we want to be — but if there are laws that are unjust, if there are laws that don’t respect human dignity, we feel that our commitment to Christ requires that we put ourselves in places where we may face some of the same threats,” said Carl Ruby, senior pastor of Central Christian Church.

Ruby said the ultimate goal of the group is to persuade the Trump administration to reverse its decision to terminate legal protections for hundreds of thousands of Haitians in the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status, or TPS.

“One way of standing with the Haitians is getting out the message of how much value they bring to the city of Springfield,” he said. “It would be an absolute disaster if we lost 10,000 of our best workers overnight because their TPS ends and they can no longer work.”

In lieu of that, Ruby said, participants in the effort are learning how to help Haitians in other ways. That includes building relationships, accompanying migrants to appointments with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and providing their families with physical shelter.

A city in the crosshairs

Springfield found itself in an unwelcome spotlight last year after Trump amplified false rumors during a presidential debate that members of the mid-size city’s burgeoning Haitian population were abducting and eating cats and dogs. It was the type of inflammatory and anti-immigrant rhetoric he promoted throughout his campaign.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced in June that it would terminate TPS as soon as Sept. 2 for about 500,000 Haitians who are already in the United States, some of whom have lived here for more than a decade. The department said conditions in the island nation have improved adequately to allow their safe return. The United Nations contradicts that assertion, saying that the economic and humanitarian crisis in Haiti has only worsened with the Trump administration’s cuts in foreign aid.

The announcement came three months after the administration revoked legal protections for thousands of Haitians who arrived legally in the United States under a humanitarian parole program as part of a series of measures implemented to curb immigration. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a federal judge’s order preventing the administration from revoking the parole program.

Last month, a federal judge in New York blocked the administration from accelerating an end to Haitians’ TPS protections, which the Biden administration had extended through at least Feb. 3, 2026, citing gang violence, political unrest, a major earthquake in 2021 and other factors.

Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said at the time that the Trump administration would eventually prevail and that its predecessors treated TPS like a “de facto asylum program.” In the meantime, the government has set the expiration date back to early February.

TPS allows people already in the United States to stay and work legally if their homelands are deemed unsafe. Immigrants from 17 countries, including Haiti, Afghanistan, Sudan and Lebanon, were receiving those protections before Trump took office for his second term in January.

Residents ponder next steps

Charla Weiss, a founding member of Undivided, the group that hosted the Springfield workshop, said participants were asked the question of how far they would go to help Haitian residents avoid deportation.

“The question that I know was before me is, how far am I willing to go to support my passion about the unlawful detainment and deportation of Haitians, in particular here in Springfield?” she said.

Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a longtime supporter of the Haitian community, was briefed by Springfield leaders during a visit to the city Friday. He told reporters that the state is bracing for the potential of mass layoffs in the region as a result of the TPS policy change, a negative for the workers and the companies that employ them.

“It’s not going to be good,” he said.

Ohio city whose Haitian migrants were disparaged by Trump braces to defend them against deportation
Springfield, Ohio, whose Haitian migrants were vilified by a Trump falsehood during last year’s campaign, is now bracing to defend them against possible deportation.

https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2025-08-02/ohio-city-whose-haitian-migrants-were-disparaged-by-trump-braces-to-defend-them-against-deportation

Ohio city whose Haitian migrants were disparaged by Trump braces to defend them against deportation

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/ohio-city-whose-haitian-migrants-were-disparaged-by-trump-braces-to-defend-them-against-deportation/ar-AA1JNjlg

Newsweek: Trump admin warns DACA recipients to self-deport

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The Trump administration advised Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients to self-deport and warned that they are “not automatically protected from deportation.”

Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of Homeland Security, told Newsweek the warning is “not new or news.”

“Illegal aliens who claim to be recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals [DACA] are not automatically protected from deportations,” she said. “DACA does not confer any form of legal status in this country. Any illegal alien who is a DACA recipient may be subject to arrest and deportation for a number of reasons, including if they’ve committed a crime.”

Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for California Governor Gavin Newsom, whose state contains the highest number of DACA recipients, told Newsweek the move “highlights the Trump administration’s hypocrisy” and shows that “they do not want to detain and deport the worst of the worst.”

“Their chaos campaign is all about detaining and deporting as many people as possible without a regard to people’s legal rights, including intercepting Americans, Dreamers, kids, people with legal protections and those following immigration rules and even U.S.-born citizens into their indiscriminate dragnet.,” she said. “It’s dangerous precedent when deportations matter more than basic rights or a functional U.S. immigration system.”

Why It Matters

President Donald Trump pledged to undertake the largest mass deportation effort in U.S. history on the campaign trail and quickly moved to increase immigration enforcement upon his return to the White House. However, he has offered mixed signals on DACA.

Although Trump sought to end DACA during his first term, he told NBC News’ Meet the Press last December that he wanted to find a way to allow DACA recipients to stay in the United States.

Former President Barack Obama introduced the DACA program in 2012. It offered protections and work authorization for undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children. But its legal status has remained in limbo for years, and the latest comments from the administration reflect the challenges faced by DACA recipients, commonly referred to as “Dreamers.”

What To Know

McLaughlin first warned that DACA recipients should self-deport in a statement provided to NPR earlier this week.

She told Newsweek on Thursday that undocumented migrants can “take control of their departure with the CBP Home App.”

“The United States is offering illegal aliens $1,000 and a free flight to self-deport now,” she said. “We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live American dream.”

The administration has not outright ended DACA, but the statement reflects a shift in policy toward these migrants from President Joe Biden‘s administration, which was more supportive of protections for Dreamers.

Reports have emerged of DACA recipients being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

Erick Hernandez Rodriguez, 34, is among the DACA recipients facing deportation. DHS said he was arrested for allegedly trying to illegally cross the southern border after allegedly self-deporting. His attorney, Valerie Sigamani, said he did not self-deport and made a wrong turn while completing a ride-share trip in San Ysidro, just north of the U.S.-Mexico border.

He has been in the U.S. for 20 years. His wife, Nancy Rivera, is a U.S. citizen, and the couple has a daughter together and is expecting a son. He had begun the process for permanent legal resident status.

DACA recipients are required to receive advance parole before leaving the U.S. to avoid loss of protection and deportation risk. There are more than 500,000 DACA recipients living in the U.S., according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

What People Are Saying

President Donald Trump told Meet the Press in December: “The Democrats have made it very, very difficult to do anything. Republicans are very open to the dreamers. The dreamers, we’re talking many years ago, they were brought into this country. Many years ago. Some of them are no longer young people. And in many cases, they’ve become successful. They have great jobs. In some cases, they have small businesses. Some cases they might have large businesses. And we’re going to have to do something with them.”

Anabel Mendoza, communications director for United We Dream, told NPR: “We’ve known that DACA remains a program that has been temporary. We’ve sounded the alarms over that. What we are seeing now is that DACA is being chipped away at.”

What Happens Next

DACA’s future remains in limbo, with legal challenges ongoing in federal courts and the administration continuing to enforce strict immigration statutes.

https://www.newsweek.com/trump-admin-daca-recipients-self-deport-2106991

Reason: Woman Who Died of Heart Disease in ICE Custody Reportedly Told Son She Wasn’t Allowed to See Doctor for Chest Pains

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Questions about the death of Marie Blaise at a South Florida ICE detention center have lingered since she collapsed in April.

A woman who died of a heart attack in a federal immigration detention facility in South Florida told her son over the phone on the day she died that staff refused to let her see a physician for chest pains, her son told a county investigator.

Marie Ange Blaise, a 44-year-old Haitian national, died on April 25 at the Broward Transitional Center (BTC)—a privately run facility in Pompano Beach, Florida, that contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). A medical examiner’s report obtained by Reason through a public records request concluded that she died of natural causes from cardiovascular disease.

An investigator for the Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office interviewed Blaise’s son, Kervens Blaise, who said his mother reported being denied medical care.

“I asked Kervens when he last spoke with his mother and said on Friday, 4/25/25 at 2:54 pm (California time),” the investigator wrote in the report. “At that time, did his mother complained of any health issues and he states she complained of having chest pains and abdominal cramps, and when she asked the detention staff to see a physician, they refused her. Kervens states his mother has been experiencing the chest pains for about a month now.”

Blaise also reportedly told several other detainees that she wasn’t feeling well that day.

Blaise was first detained by ICE on February 14 and was transferred to several different ICE detention centers before being sent to BTC in early April.

An official ICE narrative of Blaise’s medical history during her detention states that she had a history of high blood pressure and kidney disease, and that she repeatedly refused to take prescribed medication. According to the ICE report, Blaise saw medical providers three times between her arrival at BTC on April 5 and her death on April 25.

However, BTC detainees who witnessed Blaise collapse said there was also a slow staff response. 

In a report on inhumane conditions at South Florida ICE detention centers recently published by several human rights and legal aid groups, a former BTC detainee identified only as “Rosa” told researchers that she heard a scream from a nearby cell and saw Blaise kneeling on the ground.

“We started yelling for help, but the guards ignored us,” Rosa told the report authors. “Finally, one officer approached slowly, looked at her without intervening, and then walked away. After that, it took eight minutes for the medical provider to arrive, and then another 15 or 20 before the rescue team came. By then, she was not moving.”

Lawyers and detainees have repeatedly alleged medical neglect by staff at ICE facilities in South Florida, including BTC, the Krome Detention Center, and the Federal Detention Center Miami. 

Harpinder Chauhan, a British entrepreneur who was detained by ICE this spring and eventually deported, told the report’s researchers that BTC staff regularly refused to give him his insulin. 

Chauhan eventually collapsed while standing in the dinner line at BTC, leading to him being hospitalized for three days. Chauhan’s son said that hospital and ICE staff would not give him any information on his father’s condition, and he eventually learned his father had been registered under a false name.

A former detainee, whose lawyer requested that he only be identified as “A.S.,” tells Reason he spent four days in an overcrowded holding cell with 50 to 60 other people at the Krome Detention Center.

“There was a dude, he passed out. He was crying for his medicine for like two or three days,” A.S. says. “They didn’t give him his medicine until he finally passed out, right before they were gonna put him on the plane.”

Another man detained at Krome told the report’s authors that the only way he could get guards to believe he was suffering from an excruciating hernia was to throw himself on the floor. Prison staff eventually wheeled him to the medical team, where the doctor on duty told him he “likely just had gas” and offered him “a Pepto-Bismol and two Tylenols.” The detainee refused to leave until the doctor eventually agreed to send him to a hospital, where he received a CAT scan that found he had a strangulated abdominal wall hernia. “The doctor [at the hospital] told me that if I had not come in then, my intestines would have likely ruptured,” the man said.

Blaise’s death led to condemnations and calls for investigations from Florida Democrats, such as Rep. Frederica Wilson (D–Miami Gardens).

“Marie is just an example of what is going to continue to happen,” Wilson said after touring BTC in May. “This is something we’re going to continue to see. It’s going to get more crowded. It’s going to continue to have more deaths. It’s going to continue to have more children without their parents.”

https://reason.com/2025/07/30/woman-who-died-of-heart-disease-in-ice-custody-reportedly-told-son-she-wasnt-allowed-to-see-doctor-for-chest-pains

Newsweek: Kids of Afghan translator taken at green-card check living in fear—brother

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The children of an Afghan man who served with U.S. troops and entered the U.S legally are terrified to play outside after their father was detained at a green-card appointment, the man’s brother said.

Zia S., a 35-year-old father of five and former interpreter for the U.S. military, was apprehended by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents outside a United States Citizenship and Immigration Services office in East Hartford, Connecticut, on July 16, his lawyer told reporters on a press call.

The brothers requested that their names be withheld over safety concerns.

“His kids don’t even go out to play because they’re scared. And I didn’t even go out to work because I’m watching his kids,” Zia’s brother, who also served as interpreter, told Newsweek in an exclusive interview on July 30.

Why It Matters

Following the end of the U.S. military’s 20-year presence in Afghanistan in 2021, many Afghans who had assisted American forces were allowed entry into the United States through refugee programs, Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) or Temporary Protected Status (TPS). However, policy changes under the Trump administration resulted in the termination of TPS for some people, raising concerns about potential deportations.

The U.S. ended TPS for Afghans effective July 14, 2025, according to a Department of Homeland Security notice published in May. President Donald Trump has vowed to remove millions of migrants without legal status. The White House said in January that anyone living in the country unlawfully is considered to be a “criminal.”

What To Know

Zia arrived in the U.S. on humanitarian parole in October 2024 and had been living in Connecticut, his lawyer told reporters during a press call.

He assisted U.S. troops in Afghanistan for about five years and fled the country with his family in 2021. Although they had received Special Immigrant Visa approvals and were pursuing permanent residency, Zia was placed in expedited removal proceedings.

A federal judge has issued a temporary stay on his deportation. After his initial detention in Connecticut, Zia was transferred to an immigration detention center in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

A senior Department of Homeland Security official told Newsweek on July 23 that the Zia “is currently under investigation for a serious criminal allegation.” Newsweek has requested more details from DHS surrounding the alleged wrongdoing.

Zia’s brother denied that he was involved in any criminality and said the allegations are “baseless.”

Both brothers served the U.S. military as interpreters. Zia’s brother came to the U.S. more than a decade ago through the same SIV program and eventually obtained U.S. citizenship, he said.

The detention has taken a toll on his wife, Zia’s brother said.

“His wife is suffering anxiety since he’s been detained,” he said. “And nobody sleeps. The family is awake all night.”

In a message to Trump, Zia’s brother said the family followed all legal procedures and expected the U.S. to honor commitments to its Afghan allies.

“We were promised wartime allies,” he said. “For our job, like when we have served with the U.S. and we helped the U.S. Army and our home country, and we were promised that you all would be going to the U.S. on legal pathways.

“They should stand on their promise. They should not betray us. They should not betray those who put their lives at risk and their families’ lives at risk for them.”

What People Are Saying

Senator Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, previously told Newsweek: “The Trump administration’s decision to turn its back on our Afghan allies who risked their lives and the lives of their families to support American troops in Afghanistan is unconscionable.”

A senior DHS Official told Newsweek: Zia is “a national of Afghanistan, entered the U.S. on October 8, 2024, and paroled by the Biden administration into our country.”

Zia’s attorney, Lauren Cundick Petersen, told reporters on a press call on July 22: “Following the rules are supposed to protect you. It’s not supposed to land you in detention. If he is deported, as so many of the people have articulated today, he faces death.”

What Happens Next

Zia is being held in a Massachusetts detention center and will remain in ICE custody, pending further investigation by DHS.

Kids of Afghan translator taken at green-card check living in fear—brother
“His kids don’t even go out to play because they’re scared,” the man’s brother told Newsweek.

https://www.newsweek.com/afghan-translator-ice-immigration-green-card-2107104