|
U.S.
Deports 131 Pakistanis Detained After September 11
WASHINGTON,
July 11 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The United States quietly
deported 131 Pakistani nationals on immigration violations, many of
whom had been held for months after the September 11 attacks, U.S.
daily newspaper, the Washington Post said Wednesday, July 10.
The
130 men and one woman held at Immigration and Naturalization Service
(INS) facilities in 22 U.S. cities boarded a chartered Portuguese jet
in Louisiana and were flown to Pakistan June 26, U.S. and Pakistani
officials told the paper.
The
Post reports the deportation as a “secret airlift” kept
quiet for security reasons, using the Portuguese charter flight
because of concerns that a U.S. government jet would be a potential
target.
Most
of the detainees were apprehended under a Justice Department program
targeting those who ignored previous deportation orders and those who
came under scrutiny after the attacks, 26 were arrested on immigration
violations and 35 on criminal charges.
None
appeared to have links to terrorism, U.S. officials said.
U.S.
and Pakistani officials arranged the airlift to defuse contentious
diplomatic issues after the Justice Department began arresting
immigrants in the wake of the September 11 attacks, the daily said.
Of
some 1,200 people of Arab and South Asian origin placed in detention
after September 11, of whom 751 had been detained on immigration
violations, 74 foreign nationals are still in INS custody being held
on immigration charges, the daily reported.
Three
hundred of those initially detained were from Pakistan, more than from
any other country.
The
U.S. government has detained and deported individuals in secret,
drawing criticism from civil liberties advocates who say the
government has illegally targeted Muslims and disrupted the lives of
hundreds of people who have nothing to do with terrorism and who have
built lives in the United States, reports the paper.
“The
Pakistani government was extremely cooperative in helping us ensure
that these individuals were repatriated with safety, speed and
dignity,” Karen Kraushaar, an INS spokeswoman, was quoted as saying.
Another
official, Justice Department spokeswoman Susan Dryden, played down the
deportation: “Deportation is what the INS does every day.”
“We
had a high level of cooperation with the Pakistanis,” she said,
“They were extremely cooperative.”
The
deported Pakistanis boarded the plane quietly and willingly, but 40
were “extremely unhappy,” said Imran Ali, a Pakistani consular
officer. However, one briefly resisted by lying down on the tarmac,
and another had to be carried onto the plane, he said.
Upon
their arrival in Pakistan after the 20-hour flight, which also carried
30 unarmed INS officers, most of the deportees were happy.
“It
was very moving. They were thanking God that they were free,” said
Ali. “Most of them were very disappointed to have to leave the
United States. Many were crying. But after being in detention for
eight or nine months, they were also happy to be back in Pakistan.”
Authorities
had planned for 170 Pakistanis to be aboard the airlift, but 39
obtained court rulings blocking their deportation, Ali told the paper.
|
