Press Release
Published on July 1, 2026
Washington, D.C. — Human Rights First's ICE Flight Monitor is tracking the aftermath of a U.S. deportation flight that landed in Venezuela on Wednesday, June 24, just hours before two devastating earthquakes struck the country’s Caribbean coast—a disaster that may have killed many of the very people the United States had just removed.
According to flight data tracked by ICE Flight Monitor, the charter flight was operated by GlobalX and originated in Phoenix, Arizona, with stops in El Paso, Texas, and Miami, Florida, before landing at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Caracas. Data from the Venezuelan government indicates 146 Venezuelans were aboard, including 120 men, 19 women, and 7 children. The earthquakes struck the coastal region surrounding Caracas and neighboring states shortly after the flight arrived in country, and the fate, identities, or current whereabouts of those who were aboard this deportation flight have not been publicly disclosed.
"This horrific tragedy is a devastating example of what happens when our government removes people to danger in secrecy, with no care or regard for what happens to them after they land,” said Savi Arvey, Director of Policy, Refugee and Immigrant Rights. “The pace and scale of deportations to Venezuela since the start of the second Trump administration has been staggering—and carried out with an alarming lack of transparency. When the government carries out deportations behind a veil of secrecy, there is little public accountability, and it is impossible for individuals and their loved ones to plan for safe repatriation.”
This flight was not an outlier. During the second Trump administration, there have been a total of 138 deportation flights to Venezuela, removing at least 25,183 Venezuelans, including families and children, while the country has been contending with a long-term humanitarian and political crisis. Since the start of 2026, following the U.S. military action in Venezuela to arrest and remove former President Maduro from power, these removal flights have increased in pace and have normally taken place three times a week, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. However, ICE Flight Monitor has not recorded any removal flights to Venezuela since June 24, the date of the earthquakes, and it appears that Simón Bolívar International Airport in Caracas remains closed due to damage as a result of the earthquakes.
“At least some of the deportees on this flight had already survived weeks in U.S. immigration detention before being placed on a plane back to a country many had fled in the first place,” continued Arvey. “For many, the journey ended not in reunification with family, but in devastation. We are calling for a surge in humanitarian assistance, including rescue operations and emergency relief for communities affected by the earthquakes, a halt in all removals to Venezuela, for the immediate reinstatement and extension of Temporary Protected Status for Venezuela, to provide relief for those Venezuelans already in the United States, and an accelerated timeline for a democratic transition that includes all Venezuelans."
ICE Flight Monitor will continue tracking any deportation flights to Venezuela and monitoring developments related to this ongoing crisis, and will provide updates as more information becomes available.
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About ICE Flight MonitorICE Flight Monitor uses publicly available aviation data to track U.S. immigration enforcement flights operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and partner agencies. The project provides transparent, data-driven reporting to strengthen accountability and expose the human costs of mass deportation.
