U.S. Officials Consider Deporting Migrants to Libya Under Trump Administration

The Trump administration may soon start deporting migrants to Libya, expanding its mass deportation campaign to the troubled North African country, two U.S. officials told CBS News Tuesday.

The deportations, anticipated to be carried out by the U.S. military, might begin as soon as this week, according to officials who spoke on condition of anonymity about internal government discussions.

Libya is one of several Distant countries where the U.S. administration has requested the acceptance of deportees who originate from other nations, as reported by CBS News. reported earlier this week.

The potential for U.S. deportations to Libya, which was highlighted byReuters on Tuesday, is quite shocking considering the severe political and societal unrest in the North African nation and its poor human rights situation.

Since the civil war began in 2011, Libya has been plagued by armed conflict and political tumult. The country, itself a corridor For destitute migrants aiming to reach Europe by traversing the Mediterranean Sea, the nation is split into two camps. The western region is under the administration of a UN-supported government based in Tripoli, whereas the eastern area is governed differently. is controlled by a strongman .

The State Department has issued a Level 4 warning travel advisory For Libya, the advisory warns Americans against traveling due to "criminal activities, terrorist threats, undetonated landmines, civil disturbances, abductions, and armed combat."

Libya has also gained infamy over its treatment of migrants seeking to reach Europe, with both advocates and U.S. officials discovering that individuals held in immigration facilities within the North African nation encounter harsh treatment, denial of fair legal procedures, and even instances of torture.

The specifics of who precisely might face deportation to Libya as part of the proposals being mulled by the Trump administration remain hazy, along with what their detention status could be once they reach the country.

In its strong attempts to discourage illegal entry into or stay within the U.S., the Trump administration has launched a robust diplomatic initiative aimed at establishing deportation accords that would permit the U.S. to expel immigrants to nations they did not originate from.

It has already persuaded Several Latin American nations have begun accepting immigrants from additional countries, redirecting Asian and African migrants to Costa Rica and Panama, as well as a group Of Venezuelan males charged with being part of a gang to El Salvador, where they were moved to a well-known maximum-security prison.

However, the Trump administration has attempted to negotiate deportation accords with nations across different continents, such as those in Africa and Europe.

U.S. authorities have reached out to several nations about possible third-country deportation agreements, including Angola, Benin, Eswatini, Moldova, and Rwanda, as revealed by internal governmental records and official sources.

It remains uncertain if any of these nations will ultimately reach accords with the U.S. Following CBS News reporting that Angola was among the countries contacted by the U.S., the Angolan Embassy in Washington stated that this Western African nation would refuse to take in deportees from third countries.