Headline

US Justifies Sending Migrants To South Sudan

Published

2 months ago

May 21, 2025

US justifies sending migrants to South Sudan
The US government on Wednesday justified its decision to deport a group of migrants, several of them Asian, to impoverished South Sudan — now in the throes of internal conflict — but suggested it was not their last stop.

Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin slammed a federal judge in Boston for suspending the expulsion, accusing him of “trying to force the United States to bring back these uniquely barbaric monsters.”

The judge on Tuesday ordered the government to “maintain custody… of class members currently being removed to South Sudan or to any other third country, to ensure the practical feasibility of return if the court finds that such removals were unlawful.”

Donald Trump campaigned for president promising to expel millions of undocumented migrants, and he has taken a number of actions aimed at speeding up deportations since returning to the White House in January.

Trump claims that the United States is facing an “invasion” from foreign criminals. But his mass deportation efforts have been thwarted or stalled by numerous courts, including the Supreme Court, over concerns that migrant rights are being ignored.

At a new hearing on Wednesday, District Judge Brian Murphy said the government had violated one of his previous orders, calling the timeframe given for the migrants to contest their expulsions “plainly insufficient.”

The White House identified the eight men as two citizens of Myanmar, two Cubans, a Vietnamese man, a Laotian, a Mexican and a South Sudanese citizen. The statement listed the crimes they allegedly committed.

“These are the only eight on the flight,” McLaughlin told reporters.

“Because of safety and operational security, we cannot tell you what the final destination for these individuals will be,” she said.

When pressed on the question, she said: “We’re confirming the fact that that’s not their final destination,” though she never named South Sudan as the stopover country.

“They’re still in DHS custody,” McLaughlin told the press conference, when asked if the administration was respecting the judge’s decision. “We are following due process under the US Constitution.”

While the government said those scheduled for expulsion had ample warning, lawyers for the Vietnamese national and one citizen of Myanmar said in court filings that their clients only learned the night before or on Tuesday, when the flight left.

The attorneys argue that the government violated an earlier order by not allowing their clients time to file for protection under the UN Convention against Torture.

When Murphy temporarily blocked the government from expelling Asian migrants to Libya earlier this month, he said migrants being sent to a third country had to be afforded the time to request such protection.

Headline

We’ll Deny You Visa If You’re Traveling To Give Birth, US Tells Nigerians

Published

2 days ago

July 28, 2025

Editor

The United States Mission in Nigeria has warned Nigerians planning to travel to the US primarily to give birth to secure American citizenship for their children.

In a post on X, the US Mission stated that using a visa for the main purpose of childbirth is prohibited under US immigration policy.

“Using your visa to travel for the primary purpose of giving birth in the United States so that your child will have U.S. citizenship is not permitted. Consular officers will deny your visa application if they have reason to believe this is your intent,” the US Mission said.

This warning is coming following the rising scrutiny of visa applications and growing enforcement around what is informally referred to as “birth tourism”, the practice of traveling to the US to give birth so the child obtains automatic citizenship.

Recall that the United States Department of State had also revised its visa reciprocity policy, announcing that most non-immigrant, non-diplomatic visas issued to Nigerian citizens will now be single-entry visas with a three-month validity period.

The US maintained that its visa policies are based on global technical and security benchmarks aimed at protecting the integrity of its immigration systems.

Headline

Three Dead, Several Injured As Train Derails In Germany

Published

2 days ago

July 28, 2025

Editor

Rescue forces work at the site of a derailed train near Riedlingen on July 27, 2025. (Photo by Thomas Warnack / dpa / AFP) / Germany OUT / GERMANY OUT

Three people were killed and several others injured when a regional passenger train derailed in a wooded area in southwestern Germany on Sunday, police said.

About 100 passengers were aboard the train, when the accident occurred at around 6:10 pm (1610 GMT) near the town of Riedlingen in Baden-Wuerttemberg state.

Contacted by AFP, police initially said four people had been killed before correcting their statement to three victims.

Authorities declined to elaborate on the number of injured or how seriously hurt they were, though tabloid Bild cited emergency workers saying there were 50 injured.

German rail operator Deutsche Bahn confirmed several deaths and numerous injured. Two train carriages had derailed “for reasons yet unknown”, it added.

Authorities were currently investigating the circumstances of the accident, the operator said, and traffic had been suspended over a 40-kilometre (25-mile) stretch of the route.

German media reported that a landslide might have caused the accident as severe storms swept through the region, according to weather services.

The passenger train was travelling from the German town of Sigmaringen to the city of Ulm when it derailed in a forested area.

– Outdated train infrastructure –

In a post on social media, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed his condolences to the families of those killed.

He added that he was in close contact with both the interior and transport ministers, and had asked them to “provide the emergency services with all the support they need”.

Footage from the scene of the accident showed yellow-and-grey-coloured train carriages lying on their sides, as firefighters and emergency services tried to get to the passengers.

According to local TV station SWR, helicopters arrived shortly after the accident to transport the injured to hospitals in the area, and emergency doctors from nearby hospitals were alerted.

German transport is regularly criticised by passengers for its outdated infrastructure, with travellers facing frequent train delays, and various technical problems.

The government has pledged to invest several hundred billion euros over the next few years, in particular to modernise infrastructure.

In June 2022, a train derailed near a Bavarian Alpine resort in southern Germany, killing four people and injuring dozens.

Germany’s deadliest rail accident happened in 1998 when a high-speed train operated by state-owned Deutsche Bahn derailed in Eschede in Lower Saxony, killing 101 people.

AFP

Headline

Man Stabs 11 People At Walmart Store In US

Published

2 days ago

July 28, 2025

Editor

At least 11 people were injured in a stabbing at a Walmart store in the Midwestern state of Michigan on Saturday, with police saying it appeared to be a random attack.

A 42-year-old male suspect was in custody, Grand Traverse County Sheriff Michael Shea told a press conference.

“Based on the information that we have at this time, it appears they were random acts,” Shea said of the attack in Traverse City, Michigan.

“The victims were not predetermined,” Shea said, adding that the suspect, a Michigan resident, apparently acted alone and used a “folding knife.”

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Six victims were in critical condition late Saturday, and five were in serious condition, Munson Healthcare said in a statement.

At least three of the victims were undergoing surgery, according to Shea. The victims included six men and five women.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said she was in touch with law enforcement regarding the “horrible news.”

“Our thoughts are with the victims and the community reeling from this brutal act of violence,” Whitmer said in an X post.

Eyewitness Julia Martell told The New York Times she heard screaming and saw a man with a knife running through the store’s pharmacy section.

Martell said she saw the man shoving and stabbing people as he moved through the store.

The 30-year-old witness described seeing three people with stab wounds and “blood everywhere.”

Shea said the stabbing spree initially started near the checkout area of the store.

“It is very uncommon for our area,” he said of the violence, adding that citizens in the Walmart “assisted” in apprehending the suspect.

Traverse City is a popular tourist destination located on the shore of Lake Michigan.

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said agents were providing “any necessary support to the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Office in their investigation of the attacks at the Walmart.”

AFP