CLAIM: Trump’s Administration Begins Mass Deportation of Nigerians

CLAIM: Trump’s Administration Begins Mass Deportation of Nigerians

A popular Facebook page, Igbo Times Magazine claims that the Trump administration has begun a massive deportation of Nigerians. 

The claim, which has an image of  Donald Trump and a crowd of people heading into the entrance of an aeroplane was posted on January 23, 2025 with the caption, “Breaking News: The Trump administration has begun a massive deportation of Nigerians, with nearly 300,000 already at the airport waiting for their flights. So far, 20,000 Nigerians have been deported, and authorities are actively searching for those in hiding, including those using false identities such as white women’s names. full Details here 👇http://ak.choufoapsel.net/4/8508133.”

VERIFICATION

Following his inauguration on January 20, Donald Trump signed executive orders that would give the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE, greater ability to conduct enforcement actions in sensitive areas, expand the pool of undocumented immigrants subject to fast-track deportation and put an end to birthright citizenship.

Reuters reported that “President Donald Trump on Monday kicked off his sweeping immigration crackdown, tasking the U.S. military with aiding border security, issuing a broad ban on asylum and taking steps to restrict citizenship for children born on U.S. soil. Declaring illegal immigration a national emergency, Trump ordered the Pentagon to provide support for border wall construction, detention space, and migrant transportation, and empowered the secretary of Defense to send troops to the border as needed.”

Searches of reliable news outlets, immigration databases, and official U.S. government communications reveal no evidence to back this claim that Nigerians are being deported massively from the U.S.

Also, mass deportation events typically involve formal announcements and visible logistical operations, none of which have been reported in this case. As of 2019, it was revealed that there are 461,695 Nigerian immigrants in the USA.

On January 23, 2025, Channels TV reported that U.S. authorities arrested 538 illegal migrants and deported hundreds in a mass operation just days into President Donald Trump’s second administration. This was disclosed by Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt but she did not disclose the nationalities of the deportees.

CONCLUSION

The claim that about 300,000 Nigerians are waiting at U.S. airports for deportation flights is FALSE as there are no related press statements, news coverage and reports. Deporting nearly 300,000 Nigerians in one event would have drawn significant media and governmental attention.

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