• ICE can deport migrants with only six hours' notice in exigent circumstances.
• New policy allows deportations to countries without safety guarantees.
• Advocates warn this change could endanger thousands of lives.
• Critics argue the policy lacks necessary safeguards for migrants.
• The Supreme Court decision facilitates the immediate implementation of this policy.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has announced a new policy allowing the deportation of migrants to third countries with as little as six hours’ notice, which raises substantial human rights concerns. This shift arises following a June Supreme Court ruling that has enabled ICE to act with greater urgency, dismissing the need for safety assurances from receiving nations. ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons noted that in standard situations, deportees would typically receive 24 hours’ notice, but under “exigent circumstances” removal could occur even quicker, as per reports from TRT Global, AA, and Reuters.

Under the revised policy, deportations may proceed to third countries even without formal assurances against torture or persecution. Critics, including immigration lawyers and advocates, argue that this could put numerous lives at risk, undermining protections under U.S. law and the Convention Against Torture. Trina Realmuto, head of the National Immigration Litigation Alliance, highlighted that these changes could lead to “thousands of lives at risk of persecution and torture” as this expedited process lacks enough time or legal access for migrants to contest their removals, according to AA, TRT Global, and Reuters.

The memo indicates that deportees will have the opportunity to voice any fear of persecution during their brief notification period. If such fears are expressed, they will undergo screenings within 24 hours to determine any eligibility for protection under U.S. law. The Supreme Court’s ruling, which lifted prior restrictions against expedited deportations, empowers ICE to initiate these removals without comprehensive scrutiny of the conditions migrants face in their new countries. Notably, Justice Sonia Sotomayor emphasized caution in such life-and-death matters—the implications of this policy change could resonate deeply, as shown in reports from Reuters, TRT Global, and AA.