Under a Florida sky that has grown crowded with the consequences of a national push to remove people quickly, a small number of gravely ill men now wait in two detention buildings, told that the countries that might have taken them will not, and that Africa is what remains. Their families, lawyers and a monitoring group have spoken up in the uncertain hours before flights they fear may carry these men to places they have never known. It is a familiar human pattern in which the machinery of removal meets the body's stubborn need for insulin, food and care, and the question of what a government
Gravely Ill Florida Detainees Face Deportation to African Countries They Have No Ties To
Gravely ill detainees, including a 41-year-old with uncontrolled diabetes and pancreatitis, face deportation to unknown African countries without access to medication or care.
"We're left with the uncertainty of not knowing how he is, or if we'll see him again."
Mark
Why does this story land so hard? Deportation flights aren't new.
Mimi
Because of who is on them. These are men the families describe as gravely ill, and they say Mexico refused one of them precisely because of his medications. Then he was told he'd go to Africa anyway.
Mark
Anisley Cortés says her husband lost over 50 pounds. What does that tell us?
Mimi
It's her account of his time in custody, first at Alligator Alcatraz and then Krome. She says he was denied medication and not fed enough. It's the human center of the piece.
Luke
Worth saying clearly, though: that is her account. DHS hasn't confirmed or disputed it. The department asked for his personal information and then didn't respond when given it.
Mark
And the flights themselves?
Mimi
Attorney Shalyn Fluharty says two flights, likely Thursday and Friday, to the Central African Republic and she believes Burundi.
Luke
Note the hedging. Flights as early as Wednesday, likely Thursday and Friday, Burundi only "we believe." That's detainee-sourced information, not an official schedule.
Mark
What about the shackling and body wraps she describes?
Luke
She says that's what happened to previous deportees and what she anticipates now. It's a prediction from precedent, not a report of what will happen this week.
Mimi
Human Rights Watch's report earlier this month, though, documented abuse during and after these flights, which gives that prediction some footing.
Mark
And Krome itself?
Mimi
That part is documented. Inspectors found 1,102 people in a space capped at 882, plus broken plumbing and a lack of medical care.
Luke
Right, and that's the firmest ground in the story. What nobody has shown yet is how many people are affected, or whether any are actually on a flight.
Der Puls
- Phone calls from inside Krome and Broward have alerted advocates that sick detainees are being pulled into interviews and told Africa is their destination.
- A 41-year-old Cuban man with uncontrolled diabetes and pancreatitis has lost more than 50 pounds and is reportedly denied medication and adequate food.
- Attorneys warn that two flights to the Central African Republic and possibly Burundi could leave as early as Thursday, with shackled passengers facing up to 24 hours in transit.
- Families fear retaliation if they speak publicly, and DHS has demanded personal information without offering a substantive answer.
- An inspector general report on Krome's 1,102 detainees in an 882-bed facility leaves the outcome uncertain, with the flights' departure this week the decisive test.
Under a Florida sky that has grown crowded with the consequences of a national push to remove people quickly, a small number of gravely ill men now wait in two detention buildings, told that the countries that might have taken them will not, and that Africa is what remains. Their families, lawyers and a monitoring group have spoken up in the uncertain hours before flights they fear may carry these men to places they have never known. It is a familiar human pattern in which the machinery of removal meets the body's stubborn need for insulin, food and care, and the question of what a government owes someone it is sending away is left hanging.
On a Tuesday night in south Florida, an immigrant rights organizer named Arianne Betancourt of the Workers Circle described phone calls from inside two ICE jails. Detainees at Krome North in Miami and the Broward transitional center in Pompano Beach had told her that men were being called into interviews with deportation agents. They were informed that because of their medical conditions Mexico would not take them, and that they would be sent to Africa instead.
Among them is Noslén Sendra, a 41-year-old Cuban man held since last November, first at the now-closed "Alligator Alcatraz" and since April at Krome. He has uncontrolled diabetes and acute pancreatitis, which hospitalized him for weeks earlier this year. His wife, Anisley Cortés, says he has lost more than 50 pounds, has been denied medication, and does not get enough food. Cuba will not accept him, and she has proof Mexico will not either. "We're left with the uncertainty of not knowing how he is, or if we'll see him again," she said.
The immigration attorney Shalyn Fluharty believes two flights, likely Thursday and Friday, will carry deportees to the Central African Republic, and possibly Burundi. Past removals, she said, involved shackles at the hands, ankles and waist, and full body wraps for those who complained. She asked what happens to people with heart conditions or diabetes that demands regular insulin and food, conditions that often turn dangerous in transit.
When Homeland Security was asked to respond, it requested the detainees' personal information. After receiving Sendra's details, it said nothing further. Betancourt warned that families who speak out risk retaliation, and pointed to an inspector general report from unannounced May visits that found Krome severely overcrowded and short on medical care.
Advocates tie all this to a national crackdown that has filled detention centers and pushed the government toward third-country flights, a practice the Supreme Court approved last month. Hundreds have already been sent to at least a dozen African countries where they had no ties, and a Human Rights Watch report this month documented abuse. What comes next is whether the flights leave this week, and whether DHS answers for the sick men who may be on board.
On Tuesday night, at a press conference in south Florida, an immigrant rights organizer described a set of phone calls she had received from inside two ICE jails. Arianne Betancourt of the Workers Circle, an advocacy group that monitors conditions at the facilities, said several detainees had called to tell her that men were being pulled into interviews with deportation agents. In those interviews, she said, they were told that because of their medical conditions Mexico would not take them, and that they would be sent to Africa instead.
The detainees are held at the Krome North processing center in Miami and the Broward transitional center in Pompano Beach. Both are privately run on behalf of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. According to the families and the Workers Circle, flights could leave as early as Wednesday. The group says multiple sick detainees with a range of conditions have been targeted, and that it learned of the operation only in the last few days.
One of them is Noslén Sendra, a 41-year-old Cuban national. His wife, Anisley Cortés, said he has been locked up since last November, first at the now-closed "Alligator Alcatraz" jail and since April at Krome. He has uncontrolled diabetes and acute pancreatitis, which put him in the hospital for weeks earlier this year. She said he lost more than 50 pounds, and that he was denied his medication and not given enough food. Cuba will not accept him, she said, and she now has proof that Mexico will not either, because he requires too many medications. She said officials told him they would deport him regardless. "We're left with the uncertainty of not knowing how he is, or if we'll see him again," she said.
Shalyn Fluharty, an immigration rights attorney, said information from detainees points to two flights, likely Thursday and Friday, headed to Africa. She named the Central African Republic and said she believed Burundi was also a destination. Based on past removals, she said, deportees were shackled at the hands, ankles and waist for flights that can last up to 24 hours, and some who complained were put in full body wraps that left them unable to move. She asked what happens to someone with a heart condition, a high stroke risk, or diabetes that requires regular food or insulin, and said such conditions often become life-threatening in transit. Betancourt added that once people are sent to third countries, they struggle to get medicine and are not receiving medical care in detention.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, asked for comment, demanded the affected detainees' personal information. When given Sendra's details, the department did not respond further.
Betancourt said families who speak out risk retaliation against their relatives. She said this is not a one-off story, and noted that the inspector general's report confirmed a lack of medical care inside Krome.
That report came from two unannounced visits to Krome in May. Inspectors found multiple violations of detention standards, chief among them severe overcrowding: 1,102 detainees in a facility with a maximum capacity of 882, a situation the report said jeopardizes safe and orderly operations. It also listed too few working toilets, sinks and showers. Earlier complaints included female detainees being made to use toilets in full view of men, and new arrivals held for more than 24 hours on a bus in the parking lot for lack of space.
Advocates say President Trump's second-term crackdown has produced overcrowding in detention centers across the country, and that DHS has tried to relieve it by stepping up flights to so-called third countries. The US supreme court approved the practice last month. Hundreds of detainees have since been deported to at least a dozen African countries where they have no ties. A Human Rights Watch report earlier this month documented abusive treatment during and after such flights, and said detainees faced persecution, arbitrary incarceration and torture on arrival.
What to watch now is whether the flights to the Central African Republic and Burundi leave this week, and whether DHS answers the families' claims about the sick men on board.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
We know that once they are deported and sent to these third countries, they are not receiving medical care in detention.— Arianne Betancourt, Workers Circle immigrant rights organizer
We're left with the uncertainty of not knowing how he is, or if we'll see him again.— Anisley Cortés, wife of detainee Noslén Sendra
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