Mexico denies entry to US cargo jet full of deportees
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A US Air Force jet was not given access to land in Mexico due to an "administrative issue" on Thursday.
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A United States Air Force C-17 cargo plane loaded with humanitarian aid lands at Camilo Daza airport in Cucuta, Colombia, on February 16, 2019. (AP)
Mexico denied a United States military plane access to land on Thursday, two American defense officials and a third person familiar with the situation said.
Two Air Force C-17 jets took off for Guatemala while a third headed for Mexico never took off, sources told NBC News. Each of the planes carried around 80 people, as part of President Donald Trump's deportation efforts.
Diplomatic relations between the two countries have been strained since Trump’s election, with the American president previously threatening to impose 25% tariffs on Mexican goods in retaliation for the influx of migrants crossing the shared border. However, these tariffs have not been enacted.
A White House official attributed the incident to "an administrative issue" and stated that it was resolved quickly.
Following the publication of the report, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X, “Yesterday, Mexico accepted a record 4 deportation flights in 1 day!” However, it was not clarified whether these flights were military, commercial, or private.
Meanwhile, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s government has consistently opposed Trump’s unilateral immigration policies, including the reinstatement of the "Remain in Mexico" policy, which mandates that migrants awaiting asylum hearings stay in Mexico.
The cooperation of the Mexican government is crucial for Trump's plan to succeed, as deporting individuals to a foreign country requires the approval and support of that nation’s government.
On Friday, Guatemala received three flights carrying Guatemalan nationals who had been deported from the US. According to a spokesperson from the Guatemalan Migration Institute, two of the flights were military aircraft, while the third was a non-military plane. A total of approximately 265 Guatemalan nationals arrived in Guatemala City.
The military deportation flights are part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to crack down on illegal immigration. This initiative, which began with a series of executive orders signed in the early days of his presidency, has aimed to curtail both illegal immigration at the US border and the number of undocumented immigrants already in the country. Additionally, Trump has deployed an extra 1,500 troops to the southern border to support immigration enforcement efforts, after declaring a state of emergency in the area.
Read more: Mexico border cities mobilize shelters amid Trump's deportation drive
