As the Trump administration's hardline immigration crackdown extends to airports, even legal applicants waiting for green cards or visa extensions are being arrested in succession.

According to The New York Times, plainclothes agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, recently arrested foreign nationals at check-in counters and boarding gates across at least 15 U.S. airports.

While ICE airport enforcement in the past primarily targeted immigrants with deportation orders, recent reports indicate that the targets now include individuals whose visas have expired but are in the process of applying for visa extensions or green cards.

Those targeted for arrest include a person married to a U.S. citizen who was in the process of applying for a green card, and an engineer waiting for an employment visa extension.

It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of immigrants and visitors stay in the U.S. past the periods specified on their visas each year.

Among them are individuals whose visas have expired, but who have received work authorization while waiting for visa extensions or green card reviews.

Falling into a legally ambiguous area, these individuals were not previously prioritized for deportation unless they had a criminal record, and it was rare for them to be detained while awaiting review. However, under the Trump administration, overstaying a visa is now viewed as illegal itself, prompting targeted enforcement.

An immigration attorney representing an Indian engineer detained while waiting for a work permit extension said, "I have practiced immigration law for 38 years, and I have never seen anything like this."

Consequently, observations suggest that immigrants must now exercise caution even when traveling within the United States.

Meanwhile, as reports emerge that ICE has begun full-scale enforcement operations even in New York City, widely known as a prominent "sanctuary city" for immigrants,
anxiety is growing within immigrant communities across the U.S.

(Reported by Jung Da-eun | Video by Lee Yu-jin | Design by Yang Hye-min | Produced by SBS Digital News)