US President Donald Trump is expected to attend the opening on Tuesday of a temporary migrant detention centre in southern Florida called “Alligator Alcatraz”, a source familiar with the matter said.
The step comes as Trump has sought to ramp up the detention and deportation of migrants, saying the measure was needed after millions crossed the border illegally under former president Joe Biden.
The centre got the nickname from its remote location in the Everglades, a vast subtropical wetland teeming with alligators, crocodiles and pythons that a Florida official said this month provides natural barriers and requires minimal security.
Trump will be accompanied by Kristi Noem, secretary of homeland security, who asked him to visit, the source said on Sunday on condition of anonymity.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
The numbers in federal immigration detention have risen sharply to 56,000 by June 15 from 39,000 when Trump took office, government data shows, and his administration has pushed to find more space.
Reuters
Trump to visit ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ migrant detention centre this week, source says
Image: REUTERS/Marco Bello
US President Donald Trump is expected to attend the opening on Tuesday of a temporary migrant detention centre in southern Florida called “Alligator Alcatraz”, a source familiar with the matter said.
The step comes as Trump has sought to ramp up the detention and deportation of migrants, saying the measure was needed after millions crossed the border illegally under former president Joe Biden.
The centre got the nickname from its remote location in the Everglades, a vast subtropical wetland teeming with alligators, crocodiles and pythons that a Florida official said this month provides natural barriers and requires minimal security.
Trump will be accompanied by Kristi Noem, secretary of homeland security, who asked him to visit, the source said on Sunday on condition of anonymity.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
The numbers in federal immigration detention have risen sharply to 56,000 by June 15 from 39,000 when Trump took office, government data shows, and his administration has pushed to find more space.
Reuters
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