President Joe Biden’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued orders to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents that protect most illegal aliens from arrest and deportation.

New guidance from acting ICE Director Tae Johnson instructs agents not to pursue illegal aliens for arrest and deportation until they have been convicted of aggravated felonies against Americans — crimes such as rape, murder, child pornography, sexual abuse of a minor, trafficking firearms, and theft.

The orders require ICE agents prioritize convicted illegal alien aggravated felons, a fraction of the United States’ illegal alien population which totals anywhere between 11 to 22 million today. The orders ensure that in cases where an illegal alien is charged with murder, rape, or child sexual abuse, they are not prioritized for arrest and deportation.

Should ICE agents try to arrest an illegal alien who is not a convicted aggravated felon — or a known or suspected terrorist or gang member — they must first get approval through an arduous chain of command process where a field director or a special agent in charge greenlights the effort.

“Forget sanctuary cities — this turns America into a sanctuary country. Prominent Leftists have spent the past months calling to ‘abolish ICE.’ The Biden administration effectively just made their wish come true,” former DHS official, now with the Heritage Foundation, Lora Ries said in a statement.

Analysis from the Center for Immigration Studies has revealed the DHS orders “will prevent the arrest and removal of nearly all of ICE’s caseload of criminals — including many aliens who have been convicted of the most serious crimes on the books.”

Most significantly, the orders are likely to prevent 9-in-10 deportations that would have otherwise received authorization from ICE officials.

The orders have already forced local law enforcement to release criminal illegal aliens back into their communities because ICE agents cannot take them into their custody for arrest and deportation. Communities in border regions and major cities are likely to see the largest spike in illegal alien criminals being released back into their neighborhoods.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.