Detentions drop by half at Trump’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ ahead of closure
According to Tsar Tom Homan, Donald Trump’s controversial immigrant detention center “Crocodile Crocodile Alcatraz” number of people, a judge to close most of the facility fell half after the order.
The US media refers to the internal e -mails between Florida officials and reports that the center may be empty in “days”.
Located in the depths of the Swamp Florida Everglades, the facility was opened in July to support the Trump’s deportation driving driving.
Everglades, a UNESCO World Heritage Area, rapidly had more than one legal difficulty due to bad conditions and environmental damage to the sensitive ecosystem.
Last week, a federal judge decided to decide on a prerequisite that stopped the expansion of the facility and ordered the injury of the operations, and all the detainees were transported within 60 days.
In response to a question from the BBC in the White House on Thursday, Homan confirmed that the number of prisoners has been half since the decision.
He did not specify how many remained, but the complex was built at the beginning to hold up to 3,000 people.
“I do not agree with the judge who made this decision.” He said. “I went there. I entered the detention areas. I saw a clean, well -groomed facility.”
He also defended the medical facilities in the detention center and called “many of us better than citizens” and said that helicopters contained landing pads for a nearby trauma center. Homan also rejected environmental concerns about waste management.
During a press briefing in the White House on Thursday, the press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the administration would comply with the court decisions, but would not “retreat.”
“We have always said that we will continue to fight at the legal court.” “We think it is inferior for an activist judge to put themselves into this immigrant detention facility.”
Leavitt said that the re -placement of immigrants after the court’s decision was “an unnecessary burden on” agents “agents, which should be removed from the internal security officials and these criminals.
According to an e-mail exchange seen by media organizations, including AP and New York Times, the Florida Emergency Management Department Executive Director Kevin Guthrie predicted that Tercatraz will probably fall to 0 people in a few days “.
While the judge’s decision pointed out a blow to the deportation driving of the Trump administration, other temporary facilities are being built in several states led by the Republic. This includes a second facility called the “limiting store” in Florida and the other in Indiana, called “Speedway Slammer” by internal security officials.
Homan said that “Crocodile Alcatraz” did not see it as a long -term solution, while it is a “big transition facility”.
“I think ice [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] It needs more bricks and mortar [facilities]”He told journalists.” Now we have money to build infrastructure …. Permanent facilities. “
Homan, who puts pressure on the loss of resources of the whole project by the reporters to the judge’s decision, said, “No”.
President Trump’s budget bill, which has signed the law on July 4, provides $ 45 billion (£ 33 billion) for extended detention centers, which some analysts say they can provide funds to 116,000 new beds.
The bill has also allocated more than $ 170 billion for immigrant implementation and border security, including $ 75 billion financing for ICE to perform implementation and deportation operations in the US interior.
