ICE Arrested and deported Hundreds of Undocumented Migrants Across Major U.S Cities, White House Reveals.

On Thursday, the Trump administration launched a significant immigration enforcement operation, resulting in the arrest of hundreds of individuals described as "illegal immigrant criminals" and the deportation of many others. According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, a total of 538 individuals were arrested, including a suspected terrorist, four members of the Tren de Aragua gang, and several people convicted of serious crimes, such as sex offenses involving minors. Tren de Aragua, a violent gang that originated in Venezuela, has increasingly become a focal point in U.S. law enforcement discussions, particularly during the presidential campaign.

Of the 538 arrests, 373 were individuals with prior criminal convictions, while 165 had no criminal records aside from their immigration violations, according to senior administration officials. An additional 1,041 people were removed or deported, with many of them flown out of the country on military aircraft. The flights included multiple trips to Guatemala, with officials confirming arrivals from both El Paso and Tucson.

Among the arrests, notable cases included a 23-year-old Ecuadorian man convicted of rape in Buffalo, as well as a man from the Dominican Republic who had been convicted of continuous sexual conduct against a child. In San Francisco, ICE agents apprehended a man with a history of continuous sexual abuse of a minor.

Leavitt described the operation as "the largest mass deportation operation in history," emphasizing the administration's commitment to removing dangerous criminals from the country. President Trump, speaking while in Asheville, North Carolina, commented that the deportation efforts were progressing smoothly and underscored that the priority was to target the "bad, hard criminals."

The deportation flights, which were reportedly authorized under the Trump administration, were part of a broader initiative to increase U.S. military involvement at the border. This operation follows a series of executive actions from President Trump aimed at reshaping the country's immigration policies in his second term.

While the White House continues to tout the success of the operation, controversy emerged after Newark, New Jersey Mayor Ras Baraka, a Democrat, condemned an ICE raid that resulted in the detention of both undocumented immigrants and U.S. citizens. Baraka claimed that ICE agents detained individuals without providing warrants, with one of the detainees reportedly being a U.S. military veteran.