©️AP
Washington, August 12, 2025.- Since Donald Trump's return to the White House, Venezuelans represent the majority of migrants expelled to third countries, according to an analysis by the Miami Herald. According to White House spokesman Abigail Jackson, the Trump administration is determined to expel illegal aliens. In March, it invoked a law of 1798 on « foreign enemies » to justify the expulsion of 230 Venezuelans to El Salvador, accusing them of belonging to the Tren de Aragua gang.
According to the Miami Herald, of the 7,900 deportations to third countries recorded in 2025, more than one third concern Venezuelan nationals. This group is particularly targeted by the migration authorities, in particular because of allegations that the Nicolás Maduro regime has deliberately infiltrated migratory flows with criminals.
The newspaper also highlights migration practices that call into question international human rights standards: expulsions to third countries unrelated to migrants, legal uncertainties, insufficient notice periods. Lawyers report six hours before deportation, insufficient time to prepare a defence or to contact a lawyer or their family. Moreover, migrants are often detained in isolated centres and transferred shortly before deportation with very little information.
Citizens of other countries such as Cuba, Nicaragua and Haiti are not spared. The data indicate that 514 Cubans, 230 Nicaraguans and approximately 90 Haitians were expelled to third countries in the first half of 2025, often without any connection with these destinations. The majority of Cubans were sent to Mexico, illustrating the ineffectiveness of protection mechanisms for vulnerable migrants.
These evictions raise serious concerns, as countries of origin — Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Haiti — are facing acute crises: authoritarian regimes, massive human rights violations and widespread violence. In Haiti, armed gangs control a large part of the territory, forcing many citizens to take refuge in unhealthy camps without access to basic humanitarian assistance.
W.E.
