Somalis in the US worried by the high number of deportees back to Somalia

A group of Somali nationals arrive at Aden Adde airport in Mogadishu. (AP)

MINNESOTA—The speed at which US authorities are enforcing deportation is worrying the undocumented Somali migrants while putting immense pressure on  the federal Somali government.

The U.S. government says almost 5,000 Somali nationals in the U.S. face deportation orders.

Deportations to Somalia have formerly outdone in 2016 record-setting numbers—eight months into the fiscal year.

Publicly, at least 260 people were deported to Somalia since October last year. They were mostly Somalis who sought refuge unsuccessfully, but also some permanent U.S. citizens with criminal convictions.

Somali Ambassador in Washington was grilled during his contemporary visit to the Twin Cities by some alerted community members. The Twin Cities play host to the largest Somali population in the United States.

In May this year, a congressional delegation from the local Minnesota assembly wrote to the Trump administration questioning the deportation of Somalis to a country grappling with famine and threats by the terror group Al-Shabab.

“These actual facts lead to great concern for the decision to ship out so many people (Somalis) to a situation where they would face possible risk and danger,” Star tribune quoted the letter.

Jennifer Vaughan, a fellow at the Internal Immigration Studies said while the US should not put limitations on immigration, “The US must put its citizens’s safety as their priority.”

On the other hand, she says, “We are cemented to people who are no longer suited to stay in this country because the surroundings in their own countries continue to be very poor.”

“Deportations to Somalia is proved to have began increasing under President Barack Obama’s reign and they have continued as President Donald Trump was voted in to be in office with assurance to advance immigration enforcement,” the Tribune reported.

Improved cooperation by the federal Somali government and the US administration is mooted as the remedy to the situation which has isolated family members who put so much into getting their kins to the States.