DHS to end deportation amnesty for Somalis

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Tuesday said she will allow the government’s special deportation amnesty for Somali citizens to expire in March, leaving hundreds of them subject to deportation.

Ms. Noem said Somalia no longer qualifies for Temporary Protected Status, the program that grants a stay of deportation and allows migrants who otherwise would be here without status to remain and hold jobs.

“Temporary means temporary. Country conditions in Somalia have improved to the point that it no longer meets the law’s requirement for Temporary Protected Status,” she said.

The move comes as Somali immigrants have been a focus of the administration.

Members of the Somali community in Minnesota have been implicated in massive fraud of government programs.

That spurred the surge of immigration enforcement officers to Minneapolis, which led to last week’s shooting death of Renee Good in a confrontation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel.

Ms. Noem said letting the Somalis remain is “contrary to our national interests.”

Somalia’s TPS designation lasts through March 17. Under the law, Ms. Noem must decide 60 days before then whether to extend the status.

As of last summer, some 700 Somalis were protected under TPS, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service.

Some of them may still have another temporary legal status and could remain under that. But those who lack any other status will have to go home, DHS said.

The department said if they sign up for the CBP Home app and register to depart, they can get a free plane ticket and a $1,000 payment.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations denounced Ms. Noem’s decision, calling it “bigoted.”

CAIR said the State Department still classifies Somalia as a “do not travel” country, indicating it’s not safe. Forcing Somalis to return would be putting them in danger, the group said.

“Ending Somali TPS defies both logic and the basic purpose of the program. This decision does not reflect changed conditions in Somalia. It reflects a political choice to abandon Somali families who were promised protection under U.S. law,” CAIR said.