U.S. Resumes Venezuela Deportation Flights With 147 Nationals After June Quakes Killed 5,500
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 4
U.S. Resumes Venezuela Deportation Flights With 147 Nationals After June Quakes Killed 5,500
2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 4
Summary
A charter flight from Miami carrying 147 Venezuelans landed in Barcelona on Monday, the first U.S. deportation flight to Venezuela since late-June earthquakes devastated the country.
DHS confirmed ICE carried out the Aug. 3 removal flight but would not say whether regular deportation operations had formally resumed or when future flights might occur.
The restart comes after a June 24 flight delivered 146 deportees hours before twin quakes; dozens were believed killed when a La Guaira intelligence-run holding center collapsed.
Neither Washington nor Venezuelan authorities has released a full passenger list, death toll or survivor list from that earlier flight, leaving families searching amid reports of intimidation.
The flights stem from a January deal under U.S. pressure for Venezuela to accept up to three weekly removals after protections such as TPS and humanitarian parole were ended.
Why did the U.S. restart deportation flights to Venezuela before a full accounting of June quake-affected deportees was made public?
If returnees were received with dignity, where is the transparent record showing who survived, where they went, and what support they received?
"Deportation Amid Disaster: Over 100,000 Venezuelans at Risk as U.S. Resumes Removals After 2026 Earthquakes"
Overview
On June 24, 2026, twin earthquakes devastated northwestern Venezuela, collapsing buildings and overwhelming hospitals. On the same day, a U.S. deportation flight landed, and deportees were sent to a hotel that soon collapsed, leaving most dead or missing. Despite this tragedy and the destruction of thousands of homes, the Trump administration accelerated deportations, stripping Venezuelans of legal protections after ending TPS and using new legal tactics to bypass judicial review. Following the U.S. capture of President Maduro, the interim Venezuelan government, under U.S. pressure, increased deportation flights, even as the country struggled with disaster recovery and a humanitarian crisis.