BEIJING, Feb. 13 -- An illegal Chinese immigrant in the United States lost her unborn twins last week at the airport while being deported, the Beijing News reported yesterday.

    Jiang Zhenxing, who was then three-months pregnant, has charged US immigration officials with causing the miscarriage by their use of force to repatriate her.

    The Chinese Consulate in New York will investigate and work to resolve the issue.

    Jiang, 33, came to the US in 1996 and married a Chinese man two years later. The couple opened a Chinese restaurant in Philadelphia.

    For the last two years, Jiang reported regularly to the local immigration bureau, until last Tuesday when she was informed of her immediate repatriation.

    She told the newspaper that she had appealed for a delay of departure so she could leave after the birth of her children, but her request was denied.

    Jiang said a US official pushed her and bumped her in the stomach twice on the way to the Kennedy Airport.

    Upon arrival, the pregnant woman had stomach pains and was sent to the Jamaica Hospital in Queens hours later.

    After an operation, the hospital removed the dead twin foetuses. Jiang's condition is now stable, though weak. The hospital has not yet announced the cause of death.

    After the incident, a spokesperson with the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement argued that there was no violation of law during the repatriation of Jiang, and it is "not true" that an official's actions led to her miscarriage. Immigration authorities said Jiang will still be deported after she recuperates.

    Cui Aimin, deputy consul-general of the Chinese Consulate in New York, said the consulate will give necessary support to Jiang, despite her illegal residency in the US, according to the Beijing News.

(Source: China Daily)