307 Iranians Caught at the Border Since Trump Took Office. Under Biden, Half Were Released.
None released under Trump. 729 released under Biden. And Democrats are still holding up DHS funding.
307 Iranians Caught at the Border Under Trump — Zero Released
While U.S. forces are striking targets inside Iran, 307 Iranians have been caught trying to illegally cross the U.S. border since President Trump took office. Under this administration, not a single one has been released into the country. Every one was transferred to ICE for detention, prosecution, or removal.
Under Biden? A very different story.
The Biden Record
Between 2021 and 2024, Border Patrol apprehended 1,500 Iranians nationwide. Nearly half — 729 — were released into the country, despite Iran being a designated State Sponsor of Terrorism and its citizens being classified as "Special Interest Aliens" (SIAs). Trump officials say those released weren't properly vetted.
And it wasn't just Iranians. At least 73,000 SIAs — people "known or evaluated to possibly have a nexus to terrorism" — were arrested under the Biden administration. The Trump administration says it's now hunting for at least 18,000 known or suspected terrorists released into the U.S. during that period, including hundreds of Iranian SIAs and 2,000 Afghans with "ties to terrorist organizations."
The Iran Problem
Deporting Iranians is uniquely complicated. Iran has never agreed to take back its citizens, and the U.S. is currently in active military operations against the country. So apprehended Iranians are either detained in the U.S. and prosecuted, or sent to one of at least 24 countries that have entered into third-country deportation agreements with the Trump administration.
Meanwhile, up in Canada, the situation is even more alarming: at least 700 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps members have been identified living in the country, posing a cross-border national security threat.
The Courts Are Backing Trump
A federal judge in Massachusetts has repeatedly tried to block the third-country deportation effort. He's been overruled every time. On Monday, the First Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the administration can continue the program. The Supreme Court has also twice blocked the lower judge's rulings, allowing deportations to proceed.
Why This Matters for Grassroots Voters
This is exactly the kind of story that makes the DHS shutdown fight so infuriating. Democrats are holding up DHS funding over ICE reforms — while 307 Iranians were caught at the border in less than two months, during an active war with Iran, after the previous administration released hundreds of Iranian nationals with possible terror ties into American communities.
Border security isn't theoretical. It's 307 people from a state sponsor of terrorism trying to walk into America while we're bombing their country. The only question is how many got through that we don't know about.
Sources
• The Center Square: 307 Iranians Apprehended