A US deportation flight carrying 172 undocumented Venezuelan migrants landed in Caracas on Friday, marking the second such arrival this week.
The flight comes just days after Venezuela reversed its suspension of repatriation flights, despite President Donald Trump’s declaration that the country’s airspace should be treated as “closed.”
The aircraft departed from Phoenix, Arizona, and touched down at Simon Bolivar International Airport, where Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil addressed the media.
Venezuela had initially halted deportation flights in response to Trump’s airspace directive but reinstated authorization earlier this week.
The deportation flights are taking place amid heightened tensions, as the United States has deployed significant military assets to the Caribbean.
The Trump administration says the buildup is part of an effort to confront alleged drug-trafficking networks linked to President Nicolas Maduro.
US officials claim that recent operations in the Caribbean and Pacific have resulted in more than 20 strikes and at least 87 deaths, but have not provided evidence directly linking the incidents to narcotics activity.
Maduro, on the other hand, has condemned the military presence as part of an American plan to remove him from power and seize control of Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.
The situation escalated in late November after the US Federal Aviation Administration warned airlines to exercise “extreme precautions” when flying over Venezuela, prompting most international carriers to suspend their services.
Shortly afterwards, Trump asserted that Venezuelan airspace should be considered completely closed.
Friday’s flight included five children, 26 women, and 141 men, according to Venezuelan authorities.
With this latest arrival, Venezuela says it has repatriated a total of 18,260 citizens through official “return to the homeland” flights, more than 14,000 of whom were expelled from the United States.