Donald Trump says he doesn’t know whether he plans to deport hundreds of immigrants to Libya, amidst reports that his administration will do so as soon as Wednesday.
“Is the administration sending migrants to Libya?” Trump was asked during a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
“I don’t know,” he responded. “You’ll have to ask the Department of Homeland Security.” Whether Trump is lying or not, his answer does nothing to quell the terrifying possibility that immigrants could be sent to a country whose prisons have been called a “hellscape” and “open slave markets” by human rights organizations.
On Tuesday, U.S. officials confirmed to multiple news outlets that the government was planning to send undocumented immigrants to Libya in what would be a cruel and unlawful escalation of the president’s deportation efforts. In March, Trump unlawfully deported 200 Venezuelan immigrants, the majority of whom had no criminal record, to El Salvador, where they are now being held in CECOT, a mega-prison notorious for human rights abuses.
More than a decade after Libya’s authoritarian state was toppled, the political situation in the country remains incredibly unstable. It’s been plagued by conflict for years, and the State Department advises Americans not to travel there amidst the risk “crime, terrorism, unexploded land mines, civil unrest, kidnapping and armed conflict.” It’s a stunning display of irony given the government may literally send people there against their will.
Libyan officials have denied the country is communicating with the United States, Reuters reported.
The president is reportedly eyeing Africa as a whole as his next target for deportations, which will likely face a flurry of legal challenges. Rwanda has already accepted at least one deportee from the United States, while several other African countries including Benin, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, and Moldova have been mentioned in various media reports.
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