Exclusive: Trump Donor's Luxury Jet Facilitates ICE Deportations of Palestinians
A Guardian investigation has uncovered that a private jet owned by Gil Dezer, a Florida property tycoon and close associate of Donald Trump, has been utilised by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for secretive deportation flights transporting Palestinian men to the Israeli-occupied West Bank. This operation marks a significant and politically sensitive shift in US immigration policy under the Trump administration.
Luxury Aircraft Deploys Deportees in Shackles
On 21 January, eight Palestinian men were left disoriented and cold at a West Bank checkpoint by Israeli authorities, dressed in prison-issued tracksuits and carrying belongings in plastic bags. Hours earlier, they had been shackled at the wrists and ankles aboard Dezer's sleek Gulfstream jet, which he has affectionately called "my little rocket ship." The flight originated from an airport near a notorious removal centre in Arizona, making refuelling stops in New Jersey, Ireland, and Bulgaria before landing in Tel Aviv.
Maher Awad, a 24-year-old originally from the West Bank who had lived in the US for nearly a decade, was among those deported. Speaking from Rammun, Awad shared photos of his girlfriend and newborn son in Michigan, expressing that "America was heaven for me." Another deportee, Sameer Isam Aziz Zeidan, a 47-year-old grocery worker from Louisiana, was separated from his wife and five children. Both men described being restrained in body constraints that made eating difficult, requiring them to bend their heads forward to consume food.
Political Connections and Secretive Operations
Gil Dezer, a longtime business partner of Donald Trump and donor to his presidential campaigns, has deep ties to the Trump family, including attending Donald Trump Jr's 30th birthday party. In a recent interview, Dezer spoke of his "love" for Trump, stating, "I've known him now for twentysomething years. I was at his wedding. He was at my wedding. We're good friends." His jet, chartered by ICE through Journey Aviation, a Florida-based company, has been involved in multiple removal flights to countries like Kenya and Liberia since last October.
Dezer claimed in an email to the Guardian that he was "never privy to the names" of those onboard when his jet was chartered, only notified of the dates of use. He did not respond to further inquiries about the deportation flights. US officials declined to disclose the cost, but aviation industry sources estimate the Israel trips cost ICE between $400,000 and $500,000, with chartered flight rates ranging from $7,000 to over $26,000 per hour.
Human Impact and Policy Shifts
The deportation flights have drawn criticism from human rights organisations. Savi Arvey, director of research and analysis for refugee and immigrant rights at Human Rights First, described the operation as part of "an opaque system of private aircraft facilitating" a mass deportation campaign that "has blatantly disregarded due process, separated families, and is operated without any accountability."
Awad's case highlights the personal toll: he was detained by ICE after a domestic violence charge was later dropped, spending a year in detention centres before deportation. Now in the West Bank, he makes video calls to his partner, Sandra McMyler, and their baby son, whom he has never met. McMyler expressed her struggle, saying, "I want my family back together."
International Implications and Lack of Transparency
The flights' refuelling stops in Ireland and Bulgaria may raise legal questions for those countries regarding the transit of shackled passengers. Israeli authorities, along with US agencies, have declined to comment on their involvement. A spokesperson for the US Department of Homeland Security stated, "If a judge finds an illegal alien has no right to be in this country, we are going to remove them. Period," without addressing specific queries about the Israel flights.
This investigation reveals a covert collaboration between the US and Israel in deporting Palestinians, underscoring the aggressive enforcement of Trump's immigration policies and the use of private assets in government operations.
