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Thirteen U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and eight deportees remain stranded at Camp Lemonnier, a U.S. military base in Djibouti, after their deportation flight was halted mid-air by a federal judge in Boston. The court order in May 2025 required detainees to receive humanitarian screenings, something immigration attorneys argue should have been offered far earlier.
Since then, both ICE agents and deportees have been trapped in grim conditions. They are crammed into a converted shipping container with only six beds, no meaningful ventilation, and temperatures exceeding 100°F. Toxic smoke from nearby burn pits has worsened the situation. Within 72 hours of arrival, both groups began suffering from respiratory infections, coughing, fever, and joint pain.
ICE agents were reportedly deployed without anti-malaria medication, proper protective gear, or any contingency plan. Now they are living side by side with the very people they were tasked to deport, many of whom never received due process before boarding the plane.
And so a hard question arises
Is this karma?
Maybe it feels like poetic justice. A system long criticized for dehumanizing detainees and ignoring legal rights is now subjecting its own personnel to dangerously poor conditions. This episode starkly reveals how neglect and expediency can harm anyone caught in the system.
To see the full scope of the problem
Here are detention center figures in key states:
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Florida: Miami’s Krome North Service Processing Center, built for 600 detainees, has housed as many as 1,700. Around 2,000 noncitizens are held daily across four facilities in South Florida. Additionally, a large tent at Krome can house 400 more, contributing to nationwide overcrowding.
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New York: Multiple centers, including MDC Brooklyn, hold roughly 1,712 detainees, with statewide capacity nearing 2,000.
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New Jersey: The Delaney Hall facility in Newark has a 1,000-bed capacity. After a recent uprising, it’s down to around 200 detainees currently.
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Pennsylvania: The Moshannon Valley Processing Center accommodates up to 1,878 detainees. The Berks County Residential Center, previously a family unit, now holds 96 adults.
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Massachusetts: While fewer large ICE facilities exist, temporary and small-scale centers contribute to an already overburdened system.
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Louisiana: Two major centers include the Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center (LaSalle) with a 1,160-bed capacity, and the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center with 1,000 beds.
Nationwide, ICE is funded for an average population of 41,500 detainees but currently houses over 47,600, exceeding capacity by 15 percent. Daily deportations remain high, averaging around 661 per day. With more detained than ever, the system is clearly stretched beyond its limits.
This isn’t simply a lapse in policy. It’s a humanitarian crisis. And the agents who enforced it may now be paying the price.
Whether you call it karma or systemic collapse, the reality is stark
When enforcement is rushed and legal safeguards are ignored, no one is safe.
ICE now faces tough decisions: resume flights under court pressure, repatriate all parties, or relocate them domestically. Until then, everyone remains stranded, unwell, and in limbo.
Ajan ICE yo ak Deta yo Bloke nan Djibouti: Èske sa se Karma?
Trèz ajan U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ak uit imigran ki te anba lòd depòtasyon ap viv nan kondisyon difisil nan Camp Lemonnier, yon baz militè Ameriken ki chita nan Djibouti, apre yon jij federal nan Boston te bay lòd pou kanpe vòl depòtasyon yo an mwayen. Jij la te bay lòd sa a nan mwa me 2025, paske moun yo pa t’ jwenn okenn evalyasyon imanitè anvan yo te mete yo sou avyon an.
Depi lè sa a, ajan ICE yo ak imigran yo ap viv kole kole nan yon kontenè metal ki pa gen ase kabann (6 sèlman), pa gen vantilasyon, epi tanperati a depase 100 degre Fahrenheit. Lafimen toksik ki soti nan fatra ki ap boule pa lwen lakòz tout moun gen tous, lafyèv, ak doulè nan kò. Anndan 72 èdtan, tout moun te deja kòmanse malad.
Ajan ICE yo pa t’ gen medikaman kont malarya, pa t’ gen ekipman pou sekirite, ni okenn plan ijans. Kounye a, yo ap viv ak menm moun yo te mete sou avyon pou depòtasyon, pami yo gen kèk ki pa t’ janm jwenn dwa legal yo.
Kounye a nou poze tèt nou yon kesyon
Èske sa se karma?
Sa ka sanble tankou jistis natirèl. Yon sistèm ki souvan kritike paske li meprize dwa imigran yo, kounye a mete pwòp ajan li yo nan move kondisyon. Epizòd sa a montre klèman ke lè yo pa respekte lwa ak dwa moun, tout moun kapab tonbe viktim, menm sa ki fè sistèm nan mache.
Men kèk chif sou kapasite sant detansyon yo nan kèk eta kle:
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Florid: Krome North Service Processing Center nan Miami fèt pou kenbe 600 moun, men li rive mete jiska 1,700 ladan li. Anviwon 2,000 moun kenbe chak jou atravè kat sant nan zòn sid Florid la. Gen yon tant ki ka kenbe 400 moun anplis.
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New York: Gen plizyè sant detansyon, tankou MDC Brooklyn, ki kenbe anviwon 1,712 moun, ak kapasite total ki prèske rive 2,000.
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New Jersey: Delaney Hall nan Newark gen kapasite pou 1,000 moun. Aprè yon rebelyon resan, yo sèlman kenbe anviwon 200 moun kounye a.
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Pennsylvani: Moshannon Valley Processing Center ka kenbe jiska 1,878 moun. Berks County Residential Center, ki te konn resevwa fanmi, kounye a kenbe 96 granmoun.
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Massachusetts: Pa gen anpil gwo sant ICE, men gen plizyè ti sant tanporè ki fè sistèm nan toujou chaje.
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Lwizyana: Gen de gwo sant, Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center (LaSalle) ki gen 1,160 kabann, epi South Louisiana ICE Processing Center ki gen 1,000 kabann.
Atravè tout peyi a, ICE resevwa fon pou kenbe 41,500 moun chak jou, men yo kenbe plis pase 47,600 kounye a, sa ki depase kapasite a pa 15%. Depòtasyon chak jou rete wo, ak yon mwayèn 661 moun chak jou. Sistèm nan plen twòp, li sou limit li.
Sa a pa sèlman yon erè nan politik
Se yon kriz imanitè. E ajan ki te mete règ yo an aplikasyon, kounye a se yo k’ap peye konsekans yo.
Kit ou rele sa karma, kit ou rele sa efondreman sistèm nan, reyalite a klè
Lè yo prese fè depòtasyon epi pa bay moun dwa legal yo, pèsonn pa an sekirite.
ICE oblije pran desizyon difisil: swa yo rekòmanse vòl la anba presyon lajistis, swa yo rapatriye tout moun, oswa relokalize yo nan lòt sant. Men pandanstan, tout moun rete bloke, malad, epi pa gen okenn solisyon klè.
