A United State official said, the country has sent approximately 2,400 people, including Cubans, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans back to Mexico since a contentious border policy known as Title 42 expired late last week. The end of Title 42, which allowed US authorities to rapidly expel people crossing the country’s southern border under the pretext of protecting public health, late on Thursday coincided with a new policy that restricts access to asylum at the frontier.
Assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security, DHS, Blas Nunez-Neto, on Monday explained that, thousands of others were repatriated to more than 10 countries, including Colombia, Honduras and Peru.
He added that Panama and Colombia were also undertaking an unprecedented joint effort to attack smuggling networks operating in the area. US President Joe Biden’s administration had anticipated a massive uptick in border crossings in the wake of Title 42’s expiration, but Nunez-Neto said no spike had been reported so far.
Chidozie Chima | September 13, 2024
