US sends migrants back to Honduras and Colombia in first voluntary deportation

US President Donald Trump has promised to increase deportations substantially

A Honduran migrant who returned voluntarily from the United States walks after arriving at Ramon Villeda Morales Airport. Picture: AP/Delmer Martinez

The United States on Monday sent 68 immigrants from Honduras and Colombia back to their countries, the first government-funded flight of what the Trump administration is calling voluntary deportations.

In the northern Honduran city of San Pedro Sula, 38 Hondurans, including 19 children, disembarked from the charter flight carrying $1,000 debit cards from the US government and the offer to one day be allowed to apply for legal entry into the US.