Southeast (HSTF-SE) continues to prevent migrations.
U.S. immigration policy remains unchanged, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Anyone attempting to enter the United States unlawfully by sea will be rescued and repatriated consistent with U.S. laws, policies and international treaty obligations.
“The U.S. maritime borders remain closed to unlawful migration attempts and criminal human smuggling,” said Rear Adm. Douglas Schofield, director of HSTF-SE and commander of the Seventh Coast Guard District. “Taking to the sea is not an option; those wishing to come to the United States must use the safe, orderly, and lawful pathways available. Our DHS-led Task Force partners are committed to saving lives and enforcing U.S. laws and policy throughout the Florida Straits and the Caribbean Sea. The Task Force maintains a robust presence on land, at sea, and in the air from the mainland United States to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands to uphold our commitment to homeland security and maritime safety.”
Last month, the Coast Guard repatriated 169 people to Haiti following an interdiction south of the Turks and Caicos Islands. They also sent 47 migrants to the Dominican Republic following an unlawful voyage in the Mona Passage near Puerto Rico.
Those who unlawfully attempt to reach the U.S. by sea, or who arrive by sea unlawfully, will not be permitted to remain in the United States and will be disqualified indefinitely from the lawful immigration parole processes for Cubans and Haitians announced in January 2023.
Regardless of nationality, migrants interdicted at sea by U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations, the Coast Guard, or state law enforcement crews will be repatriated to their country of origin or returned to their country of departure by the Coast Guard. Anyone who arrives unlawfully by sea to the mainland U.S. or our territories will be apprehended by U.S. Border Patrol, processed for removal proceedings, and returned to their country of origin by Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Enforcement and Removal Operations, with a five-year ban on reentry.
Suspected human smugglers will be investigated by Homeland Security Investigations for prosecution by the Department of Justice.
The task force works with Caribbean nations including the Bahamas, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and the Turks and Caicos Islands via U.S. Embassy staff and Coast Guard liaison officers to ensure maritime domain awareness and to maintain repatriation capabilities. HSTF-SE maintains continual awareness of migrant flow rates and the geopolitical, social, economic and security environments of source nations that might influence maritime migration trends. This monitoring allows local, state and federal partners to adjust as necessary.
HSTF-SE was established in 2003 and serves as the DHS lead for operational and tactical planning, command and control, and as a standing organization to deter, mitigate and respond to maritime mass migration in the Caribbean Sea and the Florida Straits. HSTF-SE continues enhanced enforcement efforts in support of Operation Vigilant Sentry, the 2004 DHS plan to respond to irregular maritime migration in the Caribbean Sea and the Straits of Florida.
