US deported Venezuelans through third country despite risks

MEDELLIN, Colombia (AP) — The Trump administration stealthily deported an unknown number of Venezuelans through a third country, possibly violating U.S. laws and undermining U.S. warnings about the socialist government’s human rights record, according to the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Sen. Bob Menendez said Friday that the State Department in recent weeks had confirmed to his office that the deportations occurred via Trinidad and Tobago between January and March 2020.

It’s not clear how many indirect deportations to Venezuela took place. But Menendez said they would appear to violate a U.S. travel ban imposed in May 2019 at the height of the U.S. campaign to remove President Nicolás Maduro and which prohibits all air travel to Venezuela due to safety concerns.

Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate, on Friday blasted President Trump for carrying out “stealth deportations” of Venezuelans instead of granting them what's known as temporary protected status to block their removal.

“It’s abundantly clear he has no regard for the suffering of the Venezuelan people,” said Biden, citing Menendez's findings.

Since last October, at least 180 Venezuelans have been removed from the U.S., according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE provided no breakdown but removals to third countries include Venezuelans who self-deported, those turned back at entry points as well as individuals forcibly removed against their will. Separate data from Syracuse University show that all but a handful of Venezuelans removed had no criminal conviction.

“ICE defers to the White House on Congressional correspondence directed to the Trump administration," an ICE spokesperson said in a statement.

Menendez in a letter addressed to...