Reports indicate that the Trump administration is contemplating sending immigrants to Libya for the first time, according to three U.S. officials. This move is part of his broader immigration enforcement efforts, despite previous criticism from detainees in Libya.
Two officials mentioned that military flights could potentially transport migrants to Libya as early as Wednesday, although they noted that these plans might change at any moment.
The Department of Defense has presented this issue to the White House. As of now, there hasn’t been a response from the White House, the State Department, or the Department of Homeland Security regarding this matter.
Details about the number of migrants or their nationalities being targeted for deportation remain unclear. The Republican president, having made immigration a cornerstone of his campaign, has intensified enforcement actions since taking office, sending military resources to the southern border and deporting millions of undocumented migrants.
As of Monday, the administration has deported approximately 152,000 individuals, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The Trump administration has employed various tactics, such as imposing fines, revoking legal statuses, and suggesting voluntary departures. There have even been discussions about deporting immigrants to controversial detention sites like Guantanamo Bay and El Salvador.
In a human rights report released last year, the U.S. State Department highlighted the severe and dangerous conditions in Libyan prisons, along with issues of arbitrary arrests and detention.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed dissatisfaction with the current practice of sending immigrants to El Salvador, implying a desire to broaden the list of countries willing to accept deportees.
“We want to negotiate with other nations to take some of the individuals we’ve identified. The further they are from the U.S., the better,” he remarked.
A fourth U.S. official noted that the administration has been evaluating several countries for potential deportations, Libya included, for a while now.
It’s currently uncertain whether any formal agreement has been reached with Libyan authorities to accept deportees from various nationalities. Additionally, the specifics of the due process involved in these deportations remain ambiguous.
On April 19th, the Supreme Court temporarily blocked the administration from deporting a group of Venezuelan immigrants accused of gang affiliations. The Trump administration had invoked uncommon wartime laws in an attempt to expedite this process.
Libya has struggled with peace and stability since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising. By 2014, rival governments emerged, creating a fragmented nation. The national unified government in Tripoli, led by Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dubiba since 2021, has faced challenges regarding its legitimacy from the Benghazi-based House of Representatives.
