Ireland's Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) of An Garda Síochána carried out an operation removing individuals from the State to Nigeria yesterday, Wednesday, June 4.
The operation resulted in the removal of 35 individuals - 21 males, nine females, and five children. The children removed are all part of family groups, Gardaí said.
All individuals were removed on a chartered flight which left Dublin Airport last night and - after an unscheduled stop due to a "medical incident" on board - arrived in Lagos, Nigeria, on Thursday morning.
An Garda Síochána says it continues to work closely with the Department of Justice in implementing immigration policy.
"Consequences for people who remain in our country without permission"
"Ireland has a rules-based immigration system. It is important that those rules are robust and enforced," Ireland's Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan said on Thursday.
"The return of people whose applications have been refused and deportation orders have been issued is the foundation of any modern rules-based immigration process.
"People coming to Ireland must follow the appropriate pathways for legal migration, and these pathways must be adhered to and protected for our immigration system to work fairly and effectively. If a person’s application for international protection is refused and they are ordered to leave the State, they must do so.
"This is the third charter operation this year. Removal operations of this nature send a clear message that there are consequences for people who remain in our country without permission and underscores this Government’s intention to protect the integrity of our immigration system."
The Minister noted that last night's flight from Dublin was required to make an "unscheduled stop due to a medical incident on board." The flight was able to resume its journey, with all 35 people arriving in Nigeria on Thursday morning.
Minister O’Callaghan added: “Enforced removals are conducted as a measure of last resort when the person concerned has not removed themselves from the State or availed of assisted voluntary return measures.
"Before a deportation order is made, the person is offered assistance to return home voluntarily, which is the preferred option. There has been a significant increase in the number of people leaving voluntarily, and I continue to appeal to those who are given this opportunity to avail of it where appropriate.”
Another deportation flight left Dublin last night and landed safely this morning in Lagos, Nigeria. There were 35 people on board who had received but had not complied with Deportation Orders.
— Jim O'Callaghan TD (@OCallaghanJim) June 5, 2025
Voluntary return programme is the "preferred option"
Welcoming the flight, Ireland's Minister for Migration Colm Brophy said: “Having a modern immigration system where its laws are effective and enforced is a key priority for this Government.
"The removal of people who have no legal right to be in the State, and the enforcement aspect of our immigration laws, are essential for the system to work effectively.
"Today’s flight, the third charter flight this year, underpins the Government’s commitment in this area.
"I would like to thank members of An Garda Siochana for their ongoing hard work and commitment to ensuring that our returns system is effective and efficient.”
He added: “This Department has a voluntary return programme to assist people to return prior to the issuance of a deportation order.
"This is the preferred option, and I would encourage those who are provided the opportunity to return voluntarily to avail of it.
"So far this year, 694 people have availed of the voluntary return programme.”
Today a chartered flight to Nigeria removed 35 persons who were subject to deportation orders from the State. This is the 3rd such chartered flight and further operations can be expected this year.
— Colm Brophy (@brophytalks) June 5, 2025
Chartered flights for removals
Ireland's Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration said on Thursday that charter flights are used in addition to commercial flights and can be "more appropriate" in circumstances where a group of people are being removed to the same destination.
These operations, the Department says, are conducted under a contract signed by the State in November 2024 for the provision of charter aircraft.
Minister O'Callaghan told RTÉ News on Thursday that the €324,714 spent on this latest operation was "value for money."
Two charter flights already conducted this year have removed 71 people who were subject to deportation orders. Wednesday's operation brings the number of people removed by charter flight to 106.
Additionally, 54 deportation orders have been enforced on commercial flights and 23 people subject to deportation orders are confirmed to have left Ireland unescorted so far in 2025.
1,940 deportation orders have been signed in 2025
The Department went on to say on Thursday that it has "taken action to significantly improve immigration enforcement measures and increase removals."
According to the Department, 2,403 deportation orders were signed in 2024, an increase of 180% compared to 2023. In 2024, 1,116 people departed the State under various mechanisms (that is, enforced deportation, voluntary return).
This year, 1,940 deportation orders have been signed, and 888 have departed the State under various mechanisms (that is, enforced deportation, voluntary return) up to and including June 5.
Voluntary return is an option open to people who have no legal status in Ireland, including those who are refused International Protection. Where this option is taken up, a deportation order is not issued in respect of that person. In 2024, the number of voluntary returns increased to 934 compared to 213 in 2023. This is the preferred method of removing people from the State.
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