Migrants are human beings who symbolise all those rejected by globalisation, <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/pope-francis-urges-libya-peace-return-of-refugees-to-syria-212319">Pope Francis</a> told a special mass on Monday, saying "the weakest and most vulnerable must be helped".

"These least ones are abandoned and cheated into dying in the desert," the pope told the mass to mark the sixth anniversary of the pope's visit to Lampedusa, where many asylum seekers arrive after a perilous sea journey from Libya.

"These least ones are tortured, abused and violated in detention camps, these least ones face the waves of an unforgiving sea," the pope told the mass, attended by 250 people including migrants, asylum seekers, and rescue workers.

Italy has in recent weeks been trying to keep its ports closed to charity ships which have rescued migrants from the Mediterranean, usually shipwrecked after leaving war-torn and lawless Libya.

"They are persons, these are not merely social or migrant issues!" the pope said.

Italy's far-right Interior Minister <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/migrant-rescue-sailboat-defies-italys-salvini-docks-in-italy-233653">Matteo Salvini</a> has regularly used social media to attack migrants and the NGOs that help them.

"Migrants are first of all human persons, and... they are the symbol of all those rejected by today’s globalised society," the pope said.

Francis travelled to Lampedusa in July 2013, four months after he was elected but before the 2013-2017 wave of migrant arrivals and shipwrecks, condemning "the globalisation of indifference" towards migrants.

Since then, the pope has repeatedly called for the welcoming of migrants fleeing war or poverty.

Unfortunately, he said, the outskirts of Italian cities were "densely populated with persons who have been thrown away, marginalised, oppressed, discriminated against, abused, exploited, abandoned, poor and suffering".

Migrants are human beings who symbolise all those rejected by globalisation, Pope Francis told a special mass on Monday, saying "the weakest and most vulnerable must be helped".

Migrants are human beings who symbolise all those rejected by globalisation, Pope Francis told a special mass on Monday, saying "the weakest and most vulnerable must be helped". "These least ones are abandoned and cheated into dying in the desert," the pope told the mass to mark the sixth anniversary of the pope's visit to Lampedusa, where many asylum seekers arrive after a perilous sea journey from Libya. "These least ones are tortured, abused and violated in detention camps, these least ones face the waves of an unforgiving sea," the pope told the mass, attended by 250 people including migrants, asylum seekers, and rescue workers. Italy has in recent weeks been trying to keep its ports closed to charity ships which have rescued migrants from the Mediterranean, usually shipwrecked after leaving war-torn and lawless Libya. "They are persons, these are not merely social or migrant issues!" the pope said. Italy's far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini has regularly used social media to attack migrants and the NGOs that help them. "Migrants are first of all human persons, and... they are the symbol of all those rejected by today’s globalised society," the pope said. Francis travelled to Lampedusa in July 2013, four months after he was elected but before the 2013-2017 wave of migrant arrivals and shipwrecks, condemning "the globalisation of indifference" towards migrants. Since then, the pope has repeatedly called for the welcoming of migrants fleeing war or poverty. Unfortunately, he said, the outskirts of Italian cities were "densely populated with persons who have been thrown away, marginalised, oppressed, discriminated against, abused, exploited, abandoned, poor and suffering".

Pope Francis says migrants symbol of 'all who are rejected by globalisation'

Migrants disembarked a rescue boat in the Italian port of Lampedusa early on Sunday (July 7) after the vessel became the second in a week to breach a ban on docking in the country.

Migrants disembark in Lampedusa port

Marilyne Tatang, 23, crossed nine borders in two months to reach Mexico from the West African nation of Cameroon, fleeing political violence after police torched her house, she said.

She plans to soon take a bus north for four days and then cross the tenth border, into the United States. She is not alone - a record number of fellow Africans are flying to South America and then traversing thousands of miles of highway and a treacherous tropical rainforest to reach the United States.

Tatang, who is eight months pregnant, took a raft across a river into Mexico on June 8, a day after Mexico struck a deal with US&nbsp;President Donald Trump to do more to control the biggest flows of <a href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/mexico-hopes-to-reach-migration-deal-with-the-united-states-as-tariffs-loom-223935&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiyl_CF9J3jAhXP6nMBHWXtDy0QFjAAegQIABAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw30iaaMv3DCfndD5ZNPpJlq">migrants </a>heading north to the US&nbsp;border in more than a decade.

The migrants vying for entry at the US&nbsp;southern border are mainly Central Americans. But growing numbers from a handful of African countries are joining them, prompting calls from Trump and Mexico for other countries in Latin America to do their part to slow the overall flood of migrants.

As more Africans learn from relatives and friends who have made the trip that crossing Latin America to the United States is tough but not impossible, more are making the journey, and in turn are helping others follow in their footsteps, migration experts say.

Trump's threats to clamp down on migrants have ricocheted around the globe, paradoxically spurring some to exploit what they see as a narrowing window of opportunity, said Michelle Mittelstadt, communications director for the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington-based think tank.

"This message is being heard not just in Central America, but in other parts of the world," she said.

Data from Mexico's interior ministry suggests that migration from Africa this year will break records.

The number of Africans registered by Mexican authorities tripled in the first four months of 2019 compared with the same period a year ago, reaching about 1,900 people, mostly from Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which remains deeply unstable years after the end of a bloody regional conflict with its neighbors that led to the deaths of millions of people.

'THEY WOULD HAVE KILLED ME'

Tatang, a grade school teacher, said she left northwest Cameroon due to worsening violence in the English-speaking region, where separatists are battling the mostly French-speaking government for autonomy.

"It was so bad that they burned the house where I was living ... they would have killed me," she said, referring to government forces who tried to capture her,'' she said.

At first, Tatang planned only to cross the border into Nigeria. Then she heard that some people had made it to the <a href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/mexico-promises-unprecedented-steps-to-curb-migration-in-us-deal-joint-statement-225371&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiyl_CF9J3jAhXP6nMBHWXtDy0QFjACegQIDxAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw2rj-pLbF7Zb5fWQVfzXm4t">United States</a>.

"Someone would say, 'You can do this,'" she said. 'So I asked if it was possible for someone like me too because I'm pregnant. They said, 'Do this, do that.'"

Tatang begged her family for money for the journey, which she said so far has cost $5,000.

She said her route began with a flight to Ecuador, where Cameroonians don't need visas. Tatang went by bus and on foot through Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala until reaching Mexico.

She was still deciding what to do once she got to Mexico's northern border city of Tijuana, she said, cradling her belly while seated on a concrete bench outside migration offices in the southern Mexican city of Tapachula.

"I will just ask," she said. "I can't say, 'When I get there, I will do this.' I don't know. I've never been there."

Reuters spoke recently with five migrants in Tapachula who were from Cameroon, DRC and Angola. Several said they travelled to Brazil as a jumping-off point.

They were a small sampling of the hundreds of people - including Haitians, Cubans, Indians and Bangladeshis - clustered outside migration offices.

Political volatility in Cameroon and the DRC in recent years has displaced hundreds of thousands of people.

People from the DRC made up the third-largest group of new refugees globally last year with about 123,000 people, according to the UN&nbsp;Refugee Agency, while Cameroon's internally displaced population grew by 447,000 people.

The number of undocumented African migrants found by authorities in Mexico quadrupled compared to five years ago, reaching nearly 3,000 people in 2018.

Most obtain a visa that allows them free passage through Mexico for 20 days, after which they cross into the United States and ask for asylum.

Few choose to seek asylum in Mexico, in part because they don't speak Spanish.

Tatang said the language barrier was especially frustrating because she speaks only English, making communication difficult both with Mexican migration officials and even other Africans, such as migrants from DRC who speak primarily French.

Those who reach the United States often send advice back home, helping make the journey easier for others, said Florence Kim, spokeswoman for the International Organisation for Migration in West and Central Africa.

Like their Central American migrant counterparts, some Africans are also showing up with families hoping for easier entries than as individuals, said Mittelstadt of the Migration Policy Institute.

US&nbsp;data shows a huge spike in the number of families from countries other than Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras at the US&nbsp;southern border.

Between last October and May 16,000 members of families were registered, up from 1,000 for the whole of 2018, according to an analysis by the MPI.

REGIONAL APPROACH

The gruelling Latin America trek forces migrants to spend at least a week trudging across swampland and hiking through mountainous rainforests in the lawless Darien Gap that is the only link between Panama and Colombia.

Still, the route has a key advantage&nbsp;Countries in the region typically do not deport migrants from other continents due in part to the steep costs and lack of repatriation agreements with their home countries.

That relaxed attitude could change, however.

Under a deal struck with the United States last month, <a href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/mexico-to-discuss-safe-third-country-deal-with-us-if-migration-does-not-slow-226078&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiyl_CF9J3jAhXP6nMBHWXtDy0QFjAFegQIARAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw01vi3wq9-mXmxVRp7ZIEBf">Mexico </a>may start a process later this month to become a safe third country, making asylum seekers apply for refuge in Mexico and not the United States.

To lessen the load on Mexico, Mexico and the United States plan to put pressure on Central American nations to do more to prevent asylum seekers, including African migrants, from moving north.

For the moment, however, more Africans can be expected to attempt the journey, said IOM's Kim.

"They want to do something with their life. They feel they lack a future in their country," she said.

Marilyne Tatang, 23, crossed nine borders in two months to reach Mexico from the West African nation of Cameroon, fleeing political violence after police torched her house, she said.

Marilyne Tatang, 23, crossed nine borders in two months to reach Mexico from the West African nation of Cameroon, fleeing political violence after police torched her house, she said. She plans to soon take a bus north for four days and then cross the tenth border, into the United States. She is not alone - a record number of fellow Africans are flying to South America and then traversing thousands of miles of highway and a treacherous tropical rainforest to reach the United States. Tatang, who is eight months pregnant, took a raft across a river into Mexico on June 8, a day after Mexico struck a deal with US President Donald Trump to do more to control the biggest flows of migrants heading north to the US border in more than a decade. The migrants vying for entry at the US southern border are mainly Central Americans. But growing numbers from a handful of African countries are joining them, prompting calls from Trump and Mexico for other countries in Latin America to do their part to slow the overall flood of migrants. As more Africans learn from relatives and friends who have made the trip that crossing Latin America to the United States is tough but not impossible, more are making the journey, and in turn are helping others follow in their footsteps, migration experts say. Trump's threats to clamp down on migrants have ricocheted around the globe, paradoxically spurring some to exploit what they see as a narrowing window of opportunity, said Michelle Mittelstadt, communications director for the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington-based think tank. "This message is being heard not just in Central America, but in other parts of the world," she said. Data from Mexico's interior ministry suggests that migration from Africa this year will break records. The number of Africans registered by Mexican authorities tripled in the first four months of 2019 compared with the same period a year ago, reaching about 1,900 people, mostly from Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which remains deeply unstable years after the end of a bloody regional conflict with its neighbors that led to the deaths of millions of people. 'THEY WOULD HAVE KILLED ME' Tatang, a grade school teacher, said she left northwest Cameroon due to worsening violence in the English-speaking region, where separatists are battling the mostly French-speaking government for autonomy. "It was so bad that they burned the house where I was living ... they would have killed me," she said, referring to government forces who tried to capture her,'' she said. At first, Tatang planned only to cross the border into Nigeria. Then she heard that some people had made it to the United States. "Someone would say, 'You can do this,'" she said. 'So I asked if it was possible for someone like me too because I'm pregnant. They said, 'Do this, do that.'" Tatang begged her family for money for the journey, which she said so far has cost $5,000. She said her route began with a flight to Ecuador, where Cameroonians don't need visas. Tatang went by bus and on foot through Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala until reaching Mexico. She was still deciding what to do once she got to Mexico's northern border city of Tijuana, she said, cradling her belly while seated on a concrete bench outside migration offices in the southern Mexican city of Tapachula. "I will just ask," she said. "I can't say, 'When I get there, I will do this.' I don't know. I've never been there." Reuters spoke recently with five migrants in Tapachula who were from Cameroon, DRC and Angola. Several said they travelled to Brazil as a jumping-off point. They were a small sampling of the hundreds of people - including Haitians, Cubans, Indians and Bangladeshis - clustered outside migration offices. Political volatility in Cameroon and the DRC in recent years has displaced hundreds of thousands of people. People from the DRC made up the third-largest group of new refugees globally last year with about 123,000 people, according to the UN Refugee Agency, while Cameroon's internally displaced population grew by 447,000 people. The number of undocumented African migrants found by authorities in Mexico quadrupled compared to five years ago, reaching nearly 3,000 people in 2018. Most obtain a visa that allows them free passage through Mexico for 20 days, after which they cross into the United States and ask for asylum. Few choose to seek asylum in Mexico, in part because they don't speak Spanish. Tatang said the language barrier was especially frustrating because she speaks only English, making communication difficult both with Mexican migration officials and even other Africans, such as migrants from DRC who speak primarily French. Those who reach the United States often send advice back home, helping make the journey easier for others, said Florence Kim, spokeswoman for the International Organisation for Migration in West and Central Africa. Like their Central American migrant counterparts, some Africans are also showing up with families hoping for easier entries than as individuals, said Mittelstadt of the Migration Policy Institute. US data shows a huge spike in the number of families from countries other than Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras at the US southern border. Between last October and May 16,000 members of families were registered, up from 1,000 for the whole of 2018, according to an analysis by the MPI. REGIONAL APPROACH The gruelling Latin America trek forces migrants to spend at least a week trudging across swampland and hiking through mountainous rainforests in the lawless Darien Gap that is the only link between Panama and Colombia. Still, the route has a key advantage Countries in the region typically do not deport migrants from other continents due in part to the steep costs and lack of repatriation agreements with their home countries. That relaxed attitude could change, however. Under a deal struck with the United States last month, Mexico may start a process later this month to become a safe third country, making asylum seekers apply for refuge in Mexico and not the United States. To lessen the load on Mexico, Mexico and the United States plan to put pressure on Central American nations to do more to prevent asylum seekers, including African migrants, from moving north. For the moment, however, more Africans can be expected to attempt the journey, said IOM's Kim. "They want to do something with their life. They feel they lack a future in their country," she said.

US dream pulls African migrants in record numbers across Latin America

Hundreds of African migrants are banned from onward travel, but are also unable to return home. Watch our report to know more.

The struggles of migrants in Africa

Before dawn on Wednesday, National Guard members appeared on the banks of the Suchiate River in Ciudad Hidalgo, Chiapas, where they supported immigration agents checking documents of foreigners attempting to cross the border from Guatemala on rafts.

Migrant crackdown continues in Mexico

A Canadian editorial cartoonist, Michael de Adder, was reportedly fired from his job after a cartoon on US President <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/bodies-of-drowned-salvadoran-migrant-and-2-year-old-child-back-in-el-salvador-231939">Donald Trump</a> made by him went viral on social media.&nbsp;

Taking to Twitter to explain his side of the story, Adder said,&nbsp;"I wanted to do my job as an editorial cartoonist, and they wanted me to do their job."

"The Premier of New Brunswick Blaine Higgs (newspaper) is a former Irving Oil executive and any cartoon I drew that was slightly critical of him was systematically axed. You want to know why I was let go? I wanted to do my job as an editorial cartoonist, and they wanted me to do their job," Michael de Adder stated in a series of tweets.

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The Premier of New Brunswick Blaine Higgs is a former Irving Oil executive and any cartoon I drew that was slightly critical of him was systematically axed. You want to know why I was let go? I wanted to do my job as an editorial cartoonist, and they wanted me to do their job.
— Michael de Adder (@deAdder) <a href="https://twitter.com/deAdder/status/1145566065524715521?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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"With this said, I had been giving the NB newspapers what they want for several months. Trump wasn't on my radar. I work for Canadian newspapers so there's no need to cover Trump 24/7, Michael said, adding, "Canadian politics is quite interesting right now."

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
With this said, I had been giving the NB newspapers what they want for several months. Trump wasn't on my radar. I work for canadian newspapers so there's no need to cover Trump 24/7. And Canadian politics is quite interesting right now.
— Michael de Adder (@deAdder) <a href="https://twitter.com/deAdder/status/1145570953738575872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Michael de Adder is a Canada-based cartoonist who had been working with New Brunswick Higgs newspaper for a while after he was "let go" last week.&nbsp;

The cartoon was a satire on Donald Trump's hardline immigrant policies depicted by him playing golf while being disturbed by bodies of drowned El Salvadoran migrants Oscar Martinez Ramirez and his daughter. &nbsp;The migrants depicted in the cartoon, Ramirez and his daughter drowned last week while attempting to cross Rio Grande River from Mexico to the United States.

"Do you mind if I play through," the text written in the dialogue box of cartoon read.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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Cartoon for June 26, 2019 on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/trump?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#trump</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BorderCrisis?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BorderCrisis</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BORDER?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BORDER</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TrumpCamps?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TrumpCamps</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TrumpConcentrationCamps?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TrumpConcentrationCamps</a> <a href="https://t.co/Gui8DHsebl">pic.twitter.com/Gui8DHsebl</a>
— Michael de Adder (@deAdder) <a href="https://twitter.com/deAdder/status/1143931384265883650?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 26, 2019</a></blockquote>
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A series of haunting photographs showing the father and child lying face-down in the water had also sparked anger in El Salvador and Mexico over the treatment of migrants.

"In the past two weeks, I drew three Trump cartoons. Two went viral and the third went supernova and a day later I was let go. And not only let go, but the cartoons they already had in the also can were not used. Overnight it was like I never worked for the paper. Make your own conclusions," Adder further said in another&nbsp;tweet.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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But in the past 2 weeks I drew 3 Trump cartoons. 2 went viral and the third went supernova and a day later I was let go. And not only let go, the cartoons they already had in the can were not used. Overnight it was like I never worked for the paper. Make your own conclusions.
— Michael de Adder (@deAdder) <a href="https://twitter.com/deAdder/status/1145573147351158784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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This is not the first time a political cartoon has sparked a controversy.&nbsp;

Earlier this month, The New York Times announced&nbsp;that it will no longer include daily political cartoons in its international edition, while apologising for publishing a caricature of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deemed anti-Semitic.

The cartoon, published in April, depicted Netanyahu as a guide dog wearing a Star of David collar and leading a blind Donald Trump -- who was wearing a kippah, or a Jewish skullcap.

It prompted an uproar within the Jewish community, with Israel's ambassador to the UN likening the drawing to the content of Nazi propaganda tabloid Der Sturmer. 
&nbsp;

A Canadian editorial cartoonist, Michael de Adder, was reportedly fired from his job after a cartoon on US President Donald Trump made by him went viral on social media.

A Canadian editorial cartoonist, Michael de Adder, was reportedly fired from his job after a cartoon on US President Donald Trump made by him went viral on social media. Taking to Twitter to explain his side of the story, Adder said, "I wanted to do my job as an editorial cartoonist, and they wanted me to do their job." "The Premier of New Brunswick Blaine Higgs (newspaper) is a former Irving Oil executive and any cartoon I drew that was slightly critical of him was systematically axed. You want to know why I was let go? I wanted to do my job as an editorial cartoonist, and they wanted me to do their job," Michael de Adder stated in a series of tweets. The Premier of New Brunswick Blaine Higgs is a former Irving Oil executive and any cartoon I drew that was slightly critical of him was systematically axed. You want to know why I was let go? I wanted to do my job as an editorial cartoonist, and they wanted me to do their job. — Michael de Adder (@deAdder) July 1, 2019 × "With this said, I had been giving the NB newspapers what they want for several months. Trump wasn't on my radar. I work for Canadian newspapers so there's no need to cover Trump 24/7, Michael said, adding, "Canadian politics is quite interesting right now." With this said, I had been giving the NB newspapers what they want for several months. Trump wasn't on my radar. I work for canadian newspapers so there's no need to cover Trump 24/7. And Canadian politics is quite interesting right now. — Michael de Adder (@deAdder) July 1, 2019 × Michael de Adder is a Canada-based cartoonist who had been working with New Brunswick Higgs newspaper for a while after he was "let go" last week. The cartoon was a satire on Donald Trump's hardline immigrant policies depicted by him playing golf while being disturbed by bodies of drowned El Salvadoran migrants Oscar Martinez Ramirez and his daughter. The migrants depicted in the cartoon, Ramirez and his daughter drowned last week while attempting to cross Rio Grande River from Mexico to the United States. "Do you mind if I play through," the text written in the dialogue box of cartoon read. Cartoon for June 26, 2019 on #trump #BorderCrisis #BORDER #TrumpCamps #TrumpConcentrationCamps pic.twitter.com/Gui8DHsebl — Michael de Adder (@deAdder) June 26, 2019 × A series of haunting photographs showing the father and child lying face-down in the water had also sparked anger in El Salvador and Mexico over the treatment of migrants. "In the past two weeks, I drew three Trump cartoons. Two went viral and the third went supernova and a day later I was let go. And not only let go, but the cartoons they already had in the also can were not used. Overnight it was like I never worked for the paper. Make your own conclusions," Adder further said in another tweet. But in the past 2 weeks I drew 3 Trump cartoons. 2 went viral and the third went supernova and a day later I was let go. And not only let go, the cartoons they already had in the can were not used. Overnight it was like I never worked for the paper. Make your own conclusions. — Michael de Adder (@deAdder) July 1, 2019 × This is not the first time a political cartoon has sparked a controversy. Earlier this month, The New York Times announced that it will no longer include daily political cartoons in its international edition, while apologising for publishing a caricature of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deemed anti-Semitic. The cartoon, published in April, depicted Netanyahu as a guide dog wearing a Star of David collar and leading a blind Donald Trump -- who was wearing a kippah, or a Jewish skullcap. It prompted an uproar within the Jewish community, with Israel's ambassador to the UN likening the drawing to the content of Nazi propaganda tabloid Der Sturmer.

Canadian cartoonist 'fired' after Trump's illustration goes viral

A 17-year-old Honduran <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/migrants-describe-overcrowded-mexican-detention-centers-as-trump-ratchets-up-pressure-229762">migrant</a> described babies sleeping on a cold floor. A teen mother said her sick baby was unable to open her eyes for two days but no one responded to her pleas for help. Another teenager took charge of a 5-year-old stranger because the small child was very upset and had no one else after being separated from her father.

In filings in federal court in Los Angeles late on Wednesday, attorneys for <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/images-of-drowned-salvadoran-migrant-and-2-year-old-child-stir-outrage-230639">migrant children</a> asked a federal judge to hold the US government in contempt of court for "flagrant and persistent" violations of the terms of a 1997 agreement that governs the treatment of children in immigration detention. They requested immediate action be taken to remedy the "deplorable" conditions.

The filings, which include dozens of declarations from the children, come after attorneys and doctors last week visited Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facilities in South Texas to monitor compliance with the settlement, known as the Flores agreement.

CBP and Justice Department officials declined to comment on the filings. The visitors to the facilities found children held for weeks without access to soap, clean water, showers or even a change of clothes, the attorneys wrote. The unhygienic conditions led the flu to spread among the children, who they said were not receiving prompt medical treatment.&nbsp;

The court filings noted that at least six children have died while in US immigration custody or shortly after being released over the past year.&nbsp;

"With each passing day, more hospitalizations are occurring and more lives are at risk," the attorneys wrote.

"Immediate judicial intervention is necessary to compel immediate compliance with the Agreement, end this health and welfare crisis, and prevent more illness and child deaths at the border," the filings said.

The attorneys requested an immediate inspection of the facilities in the Rio Grande Valley and El Paso sectors by a public health expert. They also requested independent medical professionals be given access and that an emergency case management team be dispatched to speed release of children to parents and close relatives.

Broader concerns

Conditions at the Clint Border Patrol Station outside El Paso, Texas, sparked public outrage last week after the attorneys spoke out about conditions there. The documents filed late Wednesday highlight that their concerns are much broader.&nbsp;

Unaccompanied children - who cross the border alone or who have been separated from an adult they were travelling with - are supposed to be transferred quickly out of border patrol holding facilities and into the care of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which runs shelters for migrant children.

But there are now 178 children in border patrol facilities who have been there longer than the limit of 72 hours, US Rep. Diana DeGette said she was told by HHS on Wednesday.&nbsp;

At the Clint facility, the average length of time children are spending in custody is between six and 10 days, Station Chief Matthew Harris told reporters on Wednesday. Teen mothers often stay longer, up to two weeks, because they are harder to place in HHS shelters, he said.&nbsp;

President Donald Trump has made cracking down on immigration a centerpiece of his administration, arguing that the nation`s policies are too lax and filled with loopholes. But officials have struggled to handle a surge in mostly Central American families and unaccompanied children arriving at the US-Mexico border, many of them claiming asylum.&nbsp;

The administration is working on a regulation that would supersede the Flores settlement, which puts restrictions on the length of time children can be detained and the conditions they can be held in.

Migrant advocates say in their filings that the government already is breaching the settlement.

One 16-year old mother from Honduras described her 8-month-old baby vomiting and suffering diarrhoea while not being taken to see a doctor.&nbsp; 
"My baby daughter has not had medicine since we first arrived," she said in her declaration.

Many babies were not provided with appropriate food, while&nbsp;parents of infants drinking formula "reported having no ability to wash the bottles," wrote Dr. Dolly Sevier, who visited the Ursula border processing facility in McAllen, Texas.

Children described inconsolable younger children who were separated from parents or other caregivers at the border.&nbsp;

"There are little kids here who have no one to take care of them, not even a big brother or sister," one 11-year old boy said. "Some kids are only 2 or 3 years old and they have no one to take care of them."

A 17-year-old Honduran migrant described babies sleeping on a cold floor. A teen mother said her sick baby was unable to open her eyes for two days but no one responded to her pleas for help.

A 17-year-old Honduran migrant described babies sleeping on a cold floor. A teen mother said her sick baby was unable to open her eyes for two days but no one responded to her pleas for help. Another teenager took charge of a 5-year-old stranger because the small child was very upset and had no one else after being separated from her father. In filings in federal court in Los Angeles late on Wednesday, attorneys for migrant children asked a federal judge to hold the US government in contempt of court for "flagrant and persistent" violations of the terms of a 1997 agreement that governs the treatment of children in immigration detention. They requested immediate action be taken to remedy the "deplorable" conditions. The filings, which include dozens of declarations from the children, come after attorneys and doctors last week visited Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facilities in South Texas to monitor compliance with the settlement, known as the Flores agreement. CBP and Justice Department officials declined to comment on the filings. The visitors to the facilities found children held for weeks without access to soap, clean water, showers or even a change of clothes, the attorneys wrote. The unhygienic conditions led the flu to spread among the children, who they said were not receiving prompt medical treatment. The court filings noted that at least six children have died while in US immigration custody or shortly after being released over the past year. "With each passing day, more hospitalizations are occurring and more lives are at risk," the attorneys wrote. "Immediate judicial intervention is necessary to compel immediate compliance with the Agreement, end this health and welfare crisis, and prevent more illness and child deaths at the border," the filings said. The attorneys requested an immediate inspection of the facilities in the Rio Grande Valley and El Paso sectors by a public health expert. They also requested independent medical professionals be given access and that an emergency case management team be dispatched to speed release of children to parents and close relatives. Broader concerns Conditions at the Clint Border Patrol Station outside El Paso, Texas, sparked public outrage last week after the attorneys spoke out about conditions there. The documents filed late Wednesday highlight that their concerns are much broader. Unaccompanied children - who cross the border alone or who have been separated from an adult they were travelling with - are supposed to be transferred quickly out of border patrol holding facilities and into the care of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which runs shelters for migrant children. But there are now 178 children in border patrol facilities who have been there longer than the limit of 72 hours, US Rep. Diana DeGette said she was told by HHS on Wednesday. At the Clint facility, the average length of time children are spending in custody is between six and 10 days, Station Chief Matthew Harris told reporters on Wednesday. Teen mothers often stay longer, up to two weeks, because they are harder to place in HHS shelters, he said. President Donald Trump has made cracking down on immigration a centerpiece of his administration, arguing that the nation`s policies are too lax and filled with loopholes. But officials have struggled to handle a surge in mostly Central American families and unaccompanied children arriving at the US-Mexico border, many of them claiming asylum. The administration is working on a regulation that would supersede the Flores settlement, which puts restrictions on the length of time children can be detained and the conditions they can be held in. Migrant advocates say in their filings that the government already is breaching the settlement. One 16-year old mother from Honduras described her 8-month-old baby vomiting and suffering diarrhoea while not being taken to see a doctor. "My baby daughter has not had medicine since we first arrived," she said in her declaration. Many babies were not provided with appropriate food, while parents of infants drinking formula "reported having no ability to wash the bottles," wrote Dr. Dolly Sevier, who visited the Ursula border processing facility in McAllen, Texas. Children described inconsolable younger children who were separated from parents or other caregivers at the border. "There are little kids here who have no one to take care of them, not even a big brother or sister," one 11-year old boy said. "Some kids are only 2 or 3 years old and they have no one to take care of them."

Attorneys ask court to intervene against US over migrant kids' detention conditions

The US House and Senate will try to resolve their conflicting versions of an emergency funding bill on Thursday to address worsening humanitarian conditions for migrant children and families on the US-Mexico border.&nbsp;

The Republican-controlled Senate passed by an overwhelming <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-house-passes-border-aid-bill-trump-vows-veto-230591">84-8 vote a $4.6 billion spending bill</a> on Wednesday.&nbsp;

The Democratic-led House of Representatives on Tuesday night tied more strings to its approval of the money, setting standards for health and nutrition of migrants in custody after reports they lacked necessities such as soap and diapers.

A <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/images-of-drowned-salvadoran-migrant-and-2-year-old-child-stir-outrage-230639">photo of drowned migrants</a>, and reports of horrendous conditions for detained children have spurred efforts to craft compromise legislation to send to US President Donald Trump before Congress recesses this week for the US Independence Day holiday.

Whether Trump will sign a deal is uncertain as he continues to push for spending on the kind of border security some Democratic adversaries blame for migrant deaths.&nbsp;

Trump has made cracking down on immigration a centerpiece of his administration but officials are saying they will run out of money for border agencies soon. Border crossings hit the highest level in over a decade in May, straining resources and creating chaotic scenes at overcrowded border patrol facilities.&nbsp;

The need for funding has become more urgent as attorneys last week called attention to more than 300 children detained in squalid conditions at a border patrol facility in Clint, Texas. Trump has made building wall along the southern border a key goal of his administration but government officials say they need money to keep migrant housing facilities open past month end.

Border crossings hit their highest monthly level since 2006 in May, with over 60 per cent of migrants either children or families, mostly from Central America.&nbsp;

Lawyers and human rights workers said they found sick and hungry children when they visited a border patrol facility in Clint, Texas earlier this month.

"Many had been detained for weeks, one even up to a month in really horrific conditions," said Clara Long, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch.&nbsp;

The conditions of unaccompanied children crossing the border has become a key issue in the 2020 presidential race. During Wednesday night`s debate, many of the Democratic candidates called for an overhaul of US immigration laws and about 12 of them are set to visit a Florida facility this week.

A photo of a Salvadoran father and his toddler daughter who drowned attempting to cross the Rio Grande added urgency on both sides of the aisle to reach a funding deal.

Trump criticised the House bill on Wednesday, telling Fox Business Network he wanted more money for "protection" from the drug traffickers and other criminals he says are taking advantage of the family surge to slip into the country.&nbsp;

The US House and Senate will try to resolve their conflicting versions of an emergency funding bill on Thursday to address worsening humanitarian conditions for migrant children and families on the US-Mexico border.

The US House and Senate will try to resolve their conflicting versions of an emergency funding bill on Thursday to address worsening humanitarian conditions for migrant children and families on the US-Mexico border. The Republican-controlled Senate passed by an overwhelming 84-8 vote a $4.6 billion spending bill on Wednesday. The Democratic-led House of Representatives on Tuesday night tied more strings to its approval of the money, setting standards for health and nutrition of migrants in custody after reports they lacked necessities such as soap and diapers. A photo of drowned migrants, and reports of horrendous conditions for detained children have spurred efforts to craft compromise legislation to send to US President Donald Trump before Congress recesses this week for the US Independence Day holiday. Whether Trump will sign a deal is uncertain as he continues to push for spending on the kind of border security some Democratic adversaries blame for migrant deaths. Trump has made cracking down on immigration a centerpiece of his administration but officials are saying they will run out of money for border agencies soon. Border crossings hit the highest level in over a decade in May, straining resources and creating chaotic scenes at overcrowded border patrol facilities. The need for funding has become more urgent as attorneys last week called attention to more than 300 children detained in squalid conditions at a border patrol facility in Clint, Texas. Trump has made building wall along the southern border a key goal of his administration but government officials say they need money to keep migrant housing facilities open past month end. Border crossings hit their highest monthly level since 2006 in May, with over 60 per cent of migrants either children or families, mostly from Central America. Lawyers and human rights workers said they found sick and hungry children when they visited a border patrol facility in Clint, Texas earlier this month. "Many had been detained for weeks, one even up to a month in really horrific conditions," said Clara Long, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch. The conditions of unaccompanied children crossing the border has become a key issue in the 2020 presidential race. During Wednesday night`s debate, many of the Democratic candidates called for an overhaul of US immigration laws and about 12 of them are set to visit a Florida facility this week. A photo of a Salvadoran father and his toddler daughter who drowned attempting to cross the Rio Grande added urgency on both sides of the aisle to reach a funding deal. Trump criticised the House bill on Wednesday, telling Fox Business Network he wanted more money for "protection" from the drug traffickers and other criminals he says are taking advantage of the family surge to slip into the country.

US Congress clashes over border funding as migrants kept in squalor

The US House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a $4.5 billion aid package to address the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/seven-migrant-deaths-reported-in-extreme-heat-at-united-states-border-230336/amp">migrant</a> surge along the US-Mexico border, including new standards for migrants in custody following reports of <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/migrants-describe-overcrowded-mexican-detention-centers-as-trump-ratchets-up-pressure-229762">poor conditions facing young children</a> at overcrowded facilities.

The Democratic-led House voted 230-195, mostly along party lines, to pass the measure, but its future is uncertain. The Republican-run Senate is working on its own version of the bill, and Republican President Donald Trump has vowed to veto the House legislation, with White House officials saying it would hamstring the administration's border enforcement efforts.

Trump on May 1 requested the aid for programs that house, feed, transport and oversee record numbers of Central American families seeking asylum in the United States and straining capacity at migrant shelters in border cities.

Attorneys raised alarms last week after finding more than 300 migrant children in an overcrowded Texas border patrol station, where they said some had been held for weeks in squalid conditions without adequate food and water.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/explainer-how-does-the-situation-on-the-us-mexico-border-compare-with-the-past-225130">Explainer: How does the situation on the US-Mexico border compare with the past?</a>

Amid the ensuing outcry, the acting commissioner of the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency, John Sanders, said on Tuesday he was resigning.

Democrats emphasised on Tuesday that while they were approving the border aid to address the humanitarian crisis, they were not ratifying the administration's attempts to restrict and discourage immigration, which Trump has made a central focus of his presidency.

"Our legislation is a vote against the cruel attitude toward children of this administration. This bill does not fund the administration's failed mass detention policy. Instead it funds effective humane alternatives to detention that have a proven record of success," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said ahead of the vote.

Wooing progressives

But Democratic leaders had to work to secure votes for the bill from progressive lawmakers worried the Trump administration might use the funds for other purposes, such as deportation of migrants.

On Tuesday afternoon, Democrats added provisions to better protect the health of migrants in the custody of US Border Patrol agents, including standards for medical care and nutrition. They also added language to set a three-month limit for any unaccompanied child migrant to spend at an intake shelter unless notice is given.

Another amendment said shelters run by contractors must meet standards of care within six months or risk losing their contracts. Representative Pramila Jayapal, the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, agreed to back the bill after that provision was included.

The House legislation would also reinstate hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras that was cut off by the Trump administration.

The same provisions that helped win over progressive Democrats were denounced by House Republicans as "poison pills." Republicans said they preferred the $4.6 billion Senate version of the bill, which has passed a committee on a bipartisan basis, and includes money - left out by the House - to pay overtime for Immigration and Customs Enforcement employees.

The House bill is a sham that "does not help our overstretched law enforcement authorities," said House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy.

With administration officials warning they will soon run out of funds at the border, and a one-week congressional recess coming up next week, House Democrats hurried to pass the measure on Tuesday. But the Senate has yet to pass its version, and the two chambers must agree on the same legislation before it is sent to Trump.

The US House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a $4.5 billion aid package to address the migrant surge along the US-Mexico border, including new standards for migrants in custody following reports of poor conditions facing young children at overcrowded facilities.

The US House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a $4.5 billion aid package to address the migrant surge along the US-Mexico border, including new standards for migrants in custody following reports of poor conditions facing young children at overcrowded facilities. The Democratic-led House voted 230-195, mostly along party lines, to pass the measure, but its future is uncertain. The Republican-run Senate is working on its own version of the bill, and Republican President Donald Trump has vowed to veto the House legislation, with White House officials saying it would hamstring the administration's border enforcement efforts. Trump on May 1 requested the aid for programs that house, feed, transport and oversee record numbers of Central American families seeking asylum in the United States and straining capacity at migrant shelters in border cities. Attorneys raised alarms last week after finding more than 300 migrant children in an overcrowded Texas border patrol station, where they said some had been held for weeks in squalid conditions without adequate food and water. Explainer: How does the situation on the US-Mexico border compare with the past? Amid the ensuing outcry, the acting commissioner of the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency, John Sanders, said on Tuesday he was resigning. Democrats emphasised on Tuesday that while they were approving the border aid to address the humanitarian crisis, they were not ratifying the administration's attempts to restrict and discourage immigration, which Trump has made a central focus of his presidency. "Our legislation is a vote against the cruel attitude toward children of this administration. This bill does not fund the administration's failed mass detention policy. Instead it funds effective humane alternatives to detention that have a proven record of success," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said ahead of the vote. Wooing progressives But Democratic leaders had to work to secure votes for the bill from progressive lawmakers worried the Trump administration might use the funds for other purposes, such as deportation of migrants. On Tuesday afternoon, Democrats added provisions to better protect the health of migrants in the custody of US Border Patrol agents, including standards for medical care and nutrition. They also added language to set a three-month limit for any unaccompanied child migrant to spend at an intake shelter unless notice is given. Another amendment said shelters run by contractors must meet standards of care within six months or risk losing their contracts. Representative Pramila Jayapal, the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, agreed to back the bill after that provision was included. The House legislation would also reinstate hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras that was cut off by the Trump administration. The same provisions that helped win over progressive Democrats were denounced by House Republicans as "poison pills." Republicans said they preferred the $4.6 billion Senate version of the bill, which has passed a committee on a bipartisan basis, and includes money - left out by the House - to pay overtime for Immigration and Customs Enforcement employees. The House bill is a sham that "does not help our overstretched law enforcement authorities," said House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy. With administration officials warning they will soon run out of funds at the border, and a one-week congressional recess coming up next week, House Democrats hurried to pass the measure on Tuesday. But the Senate has yet to pass its version, and the two chambers must agree on the same legislation before it is sent to Trump.

US House passes border aid bill, Trump vows veto

Mexico's immigration centers are becoming increasingly squalid and overcrowded as authorities step up the detention of migrants headed for the United States, with inmates languishing for weeks amid medical neglect, according to detainees, lawyers and rights groups. 
&nbsp; 
Reuters spoke to more than a dozen recent detainees at the Siglo XXI detention center, the country`s largest. They described being held in the facility in Chiapas state on Mexico`s southern border for long periods without information about their cases.

The detainees reported severe overcrowding, sparse water and food, and limited healthcare.&nbsp;

Their accounts were supported by two lawyers representing 26 other inmates, as well as the migration ombudsman at Mexico`s National Human Rights Commission and reports from two migrant rights groups: Fray Matias de Cordova and the Human Rights Observation Mission for the Refugee and Humanitarian Crisis in Southeast Mexico, a collective of 24 aid groups.&nbsp;

&nbsp;Twelve of the detainees told Reuters they were held for at least three weeks in the center, meant to hold people for a maximum of 15 days until their cases are processed.

&nbsp;Mexico`s National Immigration Institute (INM), which runs Siglo XXI, did not respond to repeated requests for comment on conditions at the center. 
&nbsp;&nbsp; 
Asked about the extended detentions, an INM official, who asked not to be identified, said migrant cases were complex and needed to be analyzed on an individual basis.&nbsp;

&nbsp;Guards at the gates of the center declined to answer questions or to allow a Reuters reporter to speak with its director.

Detention numbers triple

US President Donald Trump made a crackdown on illegal migration the flagship policy of his 2016 election campaign. Struggling to get the funds from Congress to build a border wall, and with a significant uptick in Central Americans seeking asylum, he threatened trade tariffs unless Mexico plugged leaks south of the US border.

In response, Mexico has increased detentions. During the first five months of this year, it has tripled the number of migrants it detained monthly to reach 23,679 in May, according to unpublished government data seen by Reuters.&nbsp;

That has strained its underfunded network of centers, which already had a reputation for poor conditions.

Foreigners stopped by Mexican authorities without valid documents can be held in detention while they await transit visas or regularization of their situation. Edgar Corzo, the migration ombudsman, said that process is meant to take no more than 15 days.&nbsp;

Thousands have passed this year through the gates of Siglo XXI, which Corzo and the migrant rights groups said had been at or near double its 970-person capacity for months.

All the people spoken to for this story said detainees slept on thin mattresses or none at all in corridors and bathrooms because of lack of space in cells.&nbsp;

Corzo said that INM had failed to alleviate the overcrowding despite repeated requests from the human rights commission, which he attributed partly to a lack of resources.

Inmates said children older than 13 years were separated from parents and lights were kept on all night, disrupting sleep – claims supported by a May 31 report from the migrant aid collective and the migration rights ombudsman.

They also told Reuters about unsanitary conditions that led to mass outbreaks of diarrhea among child detainees.

Overflowing toilets

Hundreds of detainees have broken out of Siglo XXI in recent weeks after disturbances that inmates told Reuters were triggered by squalid conditions. INM acknowledged one breakout.&nbsp;

Photographs and videos shared with Reuters by one inmate at Siglo XXI purported to show lavatories blocked and overflowing with filth as well as dozens of semi-naked men sprawled on black mattresses in a corridor.&nbsp;

&nbsp;Reuters was not able to confirm their accuracy.

&nbsp;Mavi Cruz Reyes, spokeswoman for Fray Matias de Cordova, said the group has documented multiple cases of detention lasting weeks at Siglo XXI.&nbsp;

Detainees frequently are given no access to information about why they are detained, the group said.

The rights ombudsman told Reuters that some smaller centers among Mexico`s 58 immigrant detention facilities were even more overcrowded than Siglo XXI, holding up to four times capacity.&nbsp;

Lisdybi Garcia Aguilar, 26, from Cuba, was four months pregnant when migration officials pulled her out of a taxi on April 5 to check her papers, she said. Garcia was on her way to the immigration office in Tapachula to seek a visa as instructed by migration officials at the border, she added.&nbsp;

Instead, they took her to Siglo XXI, where her phone and other belongings were confiscated, she said.

"They told me it was to `regularize` my status, that all would be well and that this wasn`t a prison, it was a lodging area," Garcia told Reuters after she was freed. "It was a prison: a prison in every sense of the term."

Garcia said her pregnancy is high risk due to endometriosis - a uterine condition - but she was ignored when she pleaded for help during an episode of fainting and acute abdominal pains. When detainees took her to the clinic, she said the nurse gave her a pill without explaining what it contained.&nbsp;

Reuters was not able to independently confirm Garcia`s account. Four other inmates told Reuters they did not receive treatment for episodes that ran from fever to abdominal pains.&nbsp;

Garcia said she was held at the center for three weeks. On April 13, she filed for asylum in Mexico with an official from the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR. She showed Reuters an asylum application with that date.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 
UNHCR declined to comment on her case but confirmed it had assisted some Siglo XXI detainees with asylum applications. It said in a statement to Reuters it was concerned about conditions at the site and that detention of asylum seekers should be an exceptional practice as it could lead to their deportation, in violation of international law. &nbsp;

Cuban asylum applicant Yildiz Gomez, 22, attempted suicide by swallowing a bottle of pills used to treat ear infections after she was hauled back into Siglo XXI, having been about to be freed after three weeks in detention, according to her husband and two inmates. Detainees forced her to throw up.

On May 8 - after 47 days in detention - Gomez gave up on a legal solution. Along with dozens of other detainees, she escaped, becoming a fugitive in Mexico.

Mexico's immigration centers are becoming increasingly squalid and overcrowded as authorities step up the detention of migrants headed for the United States, with inmates languishing for weeks amid medical neglect, according to detainees, lawyers and rights groups.

Mexico's immigration centers are becoming increasingly squalid and overcrowded as authorities step up the detention of migrants headed for the United States, with inmates languishing for weeks amid medical neglect, according to detainees, lawyers and rights groups. Reuters spoke to more than a dozen recent detainees at the Siglo XXI detention center, the country`s largest. They described being held in the facility in Chiapas state on Mexico`s southern border for long periods without information about their cases. The detainees reported severe overcrowding, sparse water and food, and limited healthcare. Their accounts were supported by two lawyers representing 26 other inmates, as well as the migration ombudsman at Mexico`s National Human Rights Commission and reports from two migrant rights groups: Fray Matias de Cordova and the Human Rights Observation Mission for the Refugee and Humanitarian Crisis in Southeast Mexico, a collective of 24 aid groups. Twelve of the detainees told Reuters they were held for at least three weeks in the center, meant to hold people for a maximum of 15 days until their cases are processed. Mexico`s National Immigration Institute (INM), which runs Siglo XXI, did not respond to repeated requests for comment on conditions at the center. Asked about the extended detentions, an INM official, who asked not to be identified, said migrant cases were complex and needed to be analyzed on an individual basis. Guards at the gates of the center declined to answer questions or to allow a Reuters reporter to speak with its director. Detention numbers triple US President Donald Trump made a crackdown on illegal migration the flagship policy of his 2016 election campaign. Struggling to get the funds from Congress to build a border wall, and with a significant uptick in Central Americans seeking asylum, he threatened trade tariffs unless Mexico plugged leaks south of the US border. In response, Mexico has increased detentions. During the first five months of this year, it has tripled the number of migrants it detained monthly to reach 23,679 in May, according to unpublished government data seen by Reuters. That has strained its underfunded network of centers, which already had a reputation for poor conditions. Foreigners stopped by Mexican authorities without valid documents can be held in detention while they await transit visas or regularization of their situation. Edgar Corzo, the migration ombudsman, said that process is meant to take no more than 15 days. Thousands have passed this year through the gates of Siglo XXI, which Corzo and the migrant rights groups said had been at or near double its 970-person capacity for months. All the people spoken to for this story said detainees slept on thin mattresses or none at all in corridors and bathrooms because of lack of space in cells. Corzo said that INM had failed to alleviate the overcrowding despite repeated requests from the human rights commission, which he attributed partly to a lack of resources. Inmates said children older than 13 years were separated from parents and lights were kept on all night, disrupting sleep – claims supported by a May 31 report from the migrant aid collective and the migration rights ombudsman. They also told Reuters about unsanitary conditions that led to mass outbreaks of diarrhea among child detainees. Overflowing toilets Hundreds of detainees have broken out of Siglo XXI in recent weeks after disturbances that inmates told Reuters were triggered by squalid conditions. INM acknowledged one breakout. Photographs and videos shared with Reuters by one inmate at Siglo XXI purported to show lavatories blocked and overflowing with filth as well as dozens of semi-naked men sprawled on black mattresses in a corridor. Reuters was not able to confirm their accuracy. Mavi Cruz Reyes, spokeswoman for Fray Matias de Cordova, said the group has documented multiple cases of detention lasting weeks at Siglo XXI. Detainees frequently are given no access to information about why they are detained, the group said. The rights ombudsman told Reuters that some smaller centers among Mexico`s 58 immigrant detention facilities were even more overcrowded than Siglo XXI, holding up to four times capacity. Lisdybi Garcia Aguilar, 26, from Cuba, was four months pregnant when migration officials pulled her out of a taxi on April 5 to check her papers, she said. Garcia was on her way to the immigration office in Tapachula to seek a visa as instructed by migration officials at the border, she added. Instead, they took her to Siglo XXI, where her phone and other belongings were confiscated, she said. "They told me it was to `regularize` my status, that all would be well and that this wasn`t a prison, it was a lodging area," Garcia told Reuters after she was freed. "It was a prison: a prison in every sense of the term." Garcia said her pregnancy is high risk due to endometriosis - a uterine condition - but she was ignored when she pleaded for help during an episode of fainting and acute abdominal pains. When detainees took her to the clinic, she said the nurse gave her a pill without explaining what it contained. Reuters was not able to independently confirm Garcia`s account. Four other inmates told Reuters they did not receive treatment for episodes that ran from fever to abdominal pains. Garcia said she was held at the center for three weeks. On April 13, she filed for asylum in Mexico with an official from the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR. She showed Reuters an asylum application with that date. UNHCR declined to comment on her case but confirmed it had assisted some Siglo XXI detainees with asylum applications. It said in a statement to Reuters it was concerned about conditions at the site and that detention of asylum seekers should be an exceptional practice as it could lead to their deportation, in violation of international law. Cuban asylum applicant Yildiz Gomez, 22, attempted suicide by swallowing a bottle of pills used to treat ear infections after she was hauled back into Siglo XXI, having been about to be freed after three weeks in detention, according to her husband and two inmates. Detainees forced her to throw up. On May 8 - after 47 days in detention - Gomez gave up on a legal solution. Along with dozens of other detainees, she escaped, becoming a fugitive in Mexico.

Migrants describe overcrowded Mexican detention centers as Trump ratchets up pressure

More than 70 million people were counted last year as displaced from their homes, a record that underestimates the real number of refugees and asylum seekers, the UN said Wednesday.&nbsp;

In its annual global trends report, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) described the figure of 70.8 million at the end of 2018 as "conservative", particularly because the number of people who fled Venezuela's devastating crisis is undercounted.&nbsp;

At the end of 2017, by comparison, 68.5 million people were counted as being forcibly displaced by violence or persecution.

The UNHCR attributed the increase partly to surging displacement in Ethiopia caused by inter-ethnic conflict, and in Venezuela, where thousands are fleeing every day amid an economic collapse that has triggered shortages of basic food and medicine.

An estimated 3.3 million people have left Venezuela since the start of 2016, according to the UN.&nbsp;

UNHCR head Filippo Grandi told reporters in Geneva the figure of 70.8 million only includes Venezuelans who had officially applied for asylum -- roughly half a million people.

Overall, the number of displaced people in the world has doubled over the last 20 years and now exceeds the population of Thailand.&nbsp;

The trend, Grandi said, continues to go in "the wrong direction".

Conflicts 'Never' End

According to Amnesty International, a refugee is a person who flees their home country and cannot or will not return due to conflict or fear of persecution.

The report lists 41.3 million internally displaced people (IDPs), 25.9 million refugees, and 3.5 million asylum seekers -- those awaiting a decision on their bid for official refugee protection.

The countries with the most internally displaced people -- fleeing within their own countries -- are Syria, wracked by conflict since 2011 and Colombia, plagued by decades of violence, said the UNHCR.

The group of refugees, it added, included 5.5 million Palestinians scattered across several countries, notably Lebanon and Jordan.&nbsp;

The best solution for a refugee is to be able to return home once their country stabilises, but Grandi noted that 20 per cent have been in exile for more than two decades.&nbsp;

"We have become almost unable to make peace," the UNHCR chief said.&nbsp;

"It is true there are new conflicts, new situations producing refugees..., (but) the old ones never get resolved," he added. "When is the last conflict that you remember was resolved?"

&nbsp;'Praise' for Germany&nbsp;

The UNHCR has at times sought to push back against the phrase "migrant crisis", especially as it has been applied to an influx of people into Europe via the Mediterranean sea.

The agency has argued that while mass migration does pose serious challenges, it can be managed, particularly by wealthier nations.&nbsp;

Grandi praised Germany for its acceptance of migrants and its efforts to "demystify" the notion that migration is unmanageable, "even when the numbers are very big."

"I usually don't like to praise and criticise but I think in this case, I'd like to praise Germany for what it has done," said Grandi in Geneva, ahead of the report's launch in Berlin.&nbsp;

He noted that Chancellor Angela Merkel had paid a "heavy price" politically for her openness to migration, arguing this made her actions "even more courageous".

More than 70 million people were counted last year as displaced from their homes, a record that underestimates the real number of refugees and asylum seekers, the UN said Wednesday.

More than 70 million people were counted last year as displaced from their homes, a record that underestimates the real number of refugees and asylum seekers, the UN said Wednesday. In its annual global trends report, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) described the figure of 70.8 million at the end of 2018 as "conservative", particularly because the number of people who fled Venezuela's devastating crisis is undercounted. At the end of 2017, by comparison, 68.5 million people were counted as being forcibly displaced by violence or persecution. The UNHCR attributed the increase partly to surging displacement in Ethiopia caused by inter-ethnic conflict, and in Venezuela, where thousands are fleeing every day amid an economic collapse that has triggered shortages of basic food and medicine. An estimated 3.3 million people have left Venezuela since the start of 2016, according to the UN. UNHCR head Filippo Grandi told reporters in Geneva the figure of 70.8 million only includes Venezuelans who had officially applied for asylum -- roughly half a million people. Overall, the number of displaced people in the world has doubled over the last 20 years and now exceeds the population of Thailand. The trend, Grandi said, continues to go in "the wrong direction". Conflicts 'Never' End According to Amnesty International, a refugee is a person who flees their home country and cannot or will not return due to conflict or fear of persecution. The report lists 41.3 million internally displaced people (IDPs), 25.9 million refugees, and 3.5 million asylum seekers -- those awaiting a decision on their bid for official refugee protection. The countries with the most internally displaced people -- fleeing within their own countries -- are Syria, wracked by conflict since 2011 and Colombia, plagued by decades of violence, said the UNHCR. The group of refugees, it added, included 5.5 million Palestinians scattered across several countries, notably Lebanon and Jordan. The best solution for a refugee is to be able to return home once their country stabilises, but Grandi noted that 20 per cent have been in exile for more than two decades. "We have become almost unable to make peace," the UNHCR chief said. "It is true there are new conflicts, new situations producing refugees..., (but) the old ones never get resolved," he added. "When is the last conflict that you remember was resolved?" 'Praise' for Germany The UNHCR has at times sought to push back against the phrase "migrant crisis", especially as it has been applied to an influx of people into Europe via the Mediterranean sea. The agency has argued that while mass migration does pose serious challenges, it can be managed, particularly by wealthier nations. Grandi praised Germany for its acceptance of migrants and its efforts to "demystify" the notion that migration is unmanageable, "even when the numbers are very big." "I usually don't like to praise and criticise but I think in this case, I'd like to praise Germany for what it has done," said Grandi in Geneva, ahead of the report's launch in Berlin. He noted that Chancellor Angela Merkel had paid a "heavy price" politically for her openness to migration, arguing this made her actions "even more courageous".

Record 70.8 million people displaced at end of 2018: UN

Mexico on Wednesday called on the United Nations for more support for its plan to stem the stream of undocumented migrants who are fleeing poverty and violence in Central America.

In a meeting with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard asked for a special envoy to be appointed to coordinate the work that 14 UN agencies are carrying out on the ground in Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.

Extra UN participation was needed because the work "involves not only several agencies in Mexico but also all other agencies in the three other countries and Mexico," said Mexico's ambassador to the United Nations, Juan Ramon de la Fuente, who was also present at the meeting.

The minister himself said the meeting with Guterres had been "very successful ... We asked for a UN presence on the border."&nbsp;

A spokesman for Guterres said the "UN system has been very involved in supporting Mexico, as a large number of refugees and migrants cross its territory" and said a full statement on the meeting was likely to be released Thursday.

Thousands of Central American migrants have fled poverty and violence, heading across Mexico and bound for the United States, many of them organized into massive "caravans."&nbsp;

US President Donald Trump has threatened to close the border and slap tariffs on Mexican imports if Mexico does not stem the flow of migrants from the south.

In tense negotiations, Mexico won a delay of 45 days on punitive actions in return for a pledge to deploy 6,000 members of the National Guard along its own southern border to start cracking down on the migrant flow.

"Migration is not prohibited," said Ebrard. "But we are not going to allow the trafficking of minors as they are doing, the trafficking of people."

Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obredor and his El Salvador counterpart Nayib Bukele are due on Thursday to launch one of the development plans aimed at stemming the flow of migrants.

The plan will include 30 public policy recommendations to bolster growth and employment in the region, thereby easing pressure on people to leave their homelands. &nbsp;

Mexico will contribute "several million dollars" to the plan, said Ebrard.&nbsp;

Mexico on Wednesday called on the United Nations for more support for its plan to stem the stream of undocumented migrants who are fleeing poverty and violence in Central America.

Mexico on Wednesday called on the United Nations for more support for its plan to stem the stream of undocumented migrants who are fleeing poverty and violence in Central America. In a meeting with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard asked for a special envoy to be appointed to coordinate the work that 14 UN agencies are carrying out on the ground in Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala. Extra UN participation was needed because the work "involves not only several agencies in Mexico but also all other agencies in the three other countries and Mexico," said Mexico's ambassador to the United Nations, Juan Ramon de la Fuente, who was also present at the meeting. The minister himself said the meeting with Guterres had been "very successful ... We asked for a UN presence on the border." A spokesman for Guterres said the "UN system has been very involved in supporting Mexico, as a large number of refugees and migrants cross its territory" and said a full statement on the meeting was likely to be released Thursday. Thousands of Central American migrants have fled poverty and violence, heading across Mexico and bound for the United States, many of them organized into massive "caravans." US President Donald Trump has threatened to close the border and slap tariffs on Mexican imports if Mexico does not stem the flow of migrants from the south. In tense negotiations, Mexico won a delay of 45 days on punitive actions in return for a pledge to deploy 6,000 members of the National Guard along its own southern border to start cracking down on the migrant flow. "Migration is not prohibited," said Ebrard. "But we are not going to allow the trafficking of minors as they are doing, the trafficking of people." Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obredor and his El Salvador counterpart Nayib Bukele are due on Thursday to launch one of the development plans aimed at stemming the flow of migrants. The plan will include 30 public policy recommendations to bolster growth and employment in the region, thereby easing pressure on people to leave their homelands. Mexico will contribute "several million dollars" to the plan, said Ebrard.

Mexico asks UN for more suppoprt to tackle Central American migrants

By Savitri Arvey and Steph Leutert

Over the past three months, the number of Central Americans arriving at the US-Mexico border has jumped exponentially, and total border crossings have reached levels last seen in 2006.

Yet, while the number of families arriving between official border crossings has skyrocketed, the number of migrants seeking asylum at official border crossings has remained relatively constant, at around 4,200 per month.

It’s not that these families prefer to cross the Rio Grande or scale the border wall. Instead, our research shows that at least part of this pattern can be explained by a US policy that has left thousands of individuals waiting to request asylum in Mexican border cities since the summer of 2018.

A shift in US policy

In May 2018, US Customs and Border Protection officials began a practice known as metering across the southern border.

This means that officials are stationed at official ports of entry along the border to notify arriving asylum seekers that US&nbsp;border crossings are full due to “limited processing capacity” and they will have to wait in Mexico until space becomes available. Previously, officials processed all asylum seekers that showed up at crossings.

At the same time that the metering process began, these US&nbsp;officials started coordinating with Mexican officials to alert them of their capacity and how many asylum seekers the ports could accept per day.

As metering spread across the border, the number of asylum seekers in Mexican border cities increased. Yet it wasn’t clear exactly how many people were left waiting. When we started our research in November, no one had reported the numbers across the entire border or how the waitlists worked.

In December, we published a report with four colleagues that documented the spread of metering along the US-Mexico border and responses within Mexican border cities.

Soon after the report was published, new migration dynamics began to shift what metering looked like in these border cities, so we published an update in February and another in May.

These reports draw on dozens of interviews with Mexican government officials and civil society representatives, as well as in-person observations at ports of entry.

Our reports show that the number of people waiting in border cities to seek asylum at ports of entry has increased – from approximately 6,000 in November 2018, when the Honduran migrant caravan arrived in Tijuana, Baja California, to 19,000 in May 2019.

The increasing numbers have resulted in longer wait times along the entire border. In November 2018, most asylum seekers waited a few days or weeks for their turn on the list to request asylum at the port of entry. Now, asylum seekers wait one to two months in most cities for the chance to ask for asylum at a port of entry. In Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua and San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, they wait over four months. 
 
Waitlists

A growing numbers of Mexican border cities have developed waitlists to organize the lines of asylum seekers, coordinating with Customs and Border Protection officials on how many are accepted per day.

While all major border cities have waitlists, smaller cities now also have started their own waitlists. These lists are managed by a range of administrators, including Mexico’s National Migration Institute, state and municipal governments, civil society organizations and asylum seekers themselves.

The list logistics also vary. They may include writing name and nationality in a notebook; sending personal contact information through social media, such as a private Facebook group; or sending a Whatsapp note to the list officiator.

This lack of standardisation is not only confusing for asylum seekers, but can create nontransparent processes that foster corruption. For example, we and others have heard allegations of list administrators charging bribes to add asylum seekers to their list.

The increase in the number asylum seekers and longer wait times has put a stress on shelters in Mexican border cities, which all reported to us that they were over capacity.

As a result, asylum seekers rent hotel rooms and apartments or sleep on the streets. This increases their risks for being preyed upon by organised criminals or other opportunistic actors.

Creating new issues

The nonstandard waiting list process, long wait times and security threats in Mexican border cities have pushed some individuals to cross without authorization between US&nbsp;ports of entry to request asylum.

An October 2018 Department of Homeland Security report documented this trend, noting that metering “may have led asylum seekers at ports of entry to attempt illegal border crossings” after being turned away at ports of entry. It has also created confusion with the waitlists in Mexican border cities, as some asylum seekers do not show up for their turns.

We believe the challenges are likely to only worsen in the coming months. According to a June 7 agreement with Mexico, US&nbsp;authorities have promised to begin sending back more people to Mexican border cities under the Migrant Protection Protocols, a program that began in January to send asylum seekers to Mexico for the duration of their US asylum case proceedings.

With larger numbers of people waiting to seek asylum and others waiting during their asylum cases, Mexican border communities will likely continue to feel the strain.

 
(Savitri Arvey is Graduate Student Researcher at the Center for US-Mexican Studies, University of California San Diego; Steph Leutert is irector of the MDexico Security Initiative, University of Texas at Austin)

(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/thousands-of-asylum-seekers-left-waiting-at-the-us-mexico-border-118367">original article)</a>

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

By Savitri Arvey and Steph Leutert Over the past three months, the number of Central Americans arriving at the US-Mexico border has jumped exponentially, and total border crossings have reached levels last seen in 2006.

By Savitri Arvey and Steph Leutert Over the past three months, the number of Central Americans arriving at the US-Mexico border has jumped exponentially, and total border crossings have reached levels last seen in 2006. Yet, while the number of families arriving between official border crossings has skyrocketed, the number of migrants seeking asylum at official border crossings has remained relatively constant, at around 4,200 per month. It’s not that these families prefer to cross the Rio Grande or scale the border wall. Instead, our research shows that at least part of this pattern can be explained by a US policy that has left thousands of individuals waiting to request asylum in Mexican border cities since the summer of 2018. A shift in US policy In May 2018, US Customs and Border Protection officials began a practice known as metering across the southern border. This means that officials are stationed at official ports of entry along the border to notify arriving asylum seekers that US border crossings are full due to “limited processing capacity” and they will have to wait in Mexico until space becomes available. Previously, officials processed all asylum seekers that showed up at crossings. At the same time that the metering process began, these US officials started coordinating with Mexican officials to alert them of their capacity and how many asylum seekers the ports could accept per day. As metering spread across the border, the number of asylum seekers in Mexican border cities increased. Yet it wasn’t clear exactly how many people were left waiting. When we started our research in November, no one had reported the numbers across the entire border or how the waitlists worked. In December, we published a report with four colleagues that documented the spread of metering along the US-Mexico border and responses within Mexican border cities. Soon after the report was published, new migration dynamics began to shift what metering looked like in these border cities, so we published an update in February and another in May. These reports draw on dozens of interviews with Mexican government officials and civil society representatives, as well as in-person observations at ports of entry. Our reports show that the number of people waiting in border cities to seek asylum at ports of entry has increased – from approximately 6,000 in November 2018, when the Honduran migrant caravan arrived in Tijuana, Baja California, to 19,000 in May 2019. The increasing numbers have resulted in longer wait times along the entire border. In November 2018, most asylum seekers waited a few days or weeks for their turn on the list to request asylum at the port of entry. Now, asylum seekers wait one to two months in most cities for the chance to ask for asylum at a port of entry. In Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua and San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, they wait over four months. Waitlists A growing numbers of Mexican border cities have developed waitlists to organize the lines of asylum seekers, coordinating with Customs and Border Protection officials on how many are accepted per day. While all major border cities have waitlists, smaller cities now also have started their own waitlists. These lists are managed by a range of administrators, including Mexico’s National Migration Institute, state and municipal governments, civil society organizations and asylum seekers themselves. The list logistics also vary. They may include writing name and nationality in a notebook; sending personal contact information through social media, such as a private Facebook group; or sending a Whatsapp note to the list officiator. This lack of standardisation is not only confusing for asylum seekers, but can create nontransparent processes that foster corruption. For example, we and others have heard allegations of list administrators charging bribes to add asylum seekers to their list. The increase in the number asylum seekers and longer wait times has put a stress on shelters in Mexican border cities, which all reported to us that they were over capacity. As a result, asylum seekers rent hotel rooms and apartments or sleep on the streets. This increases their risks for being preyed upon by organised criminals or other opportunistic actors. Creating new issues The nonstandard waiting list process, long wait times and security threats in Mexican border cities have pushed some individuals to cross without authorization between US ports of entry to request asylum. An October 2018 Department of Homeland Security report documented this trend, noting that metering “may have led asylum seekers at ports of entry to attempt illegal border crossings” after being turned away at ports of entry. It has also created confusion with the waitlists in Mexican border cities, as some asylum seekers do not show up for their turns. We believe the challenges are likely to only worsen in the coming months. According to a June 7 agreement with Mexico, US authorities have promised to begin sending back more people to Mexican border cities under the Migrant Protection Protocols, a program that began in January to send asylum seekers to Mexico for the duration of their US asylum case proceedings. With larger numbers of people waiting to seek asylum and others waiting during their asylum cases, Mexican border communities will likely continue to feel the strain. (Savitri Arvey is Graduate Student Researcher at the Center for US-Mexican Studies, University of California San Diego; Steph Leutert is irector of the MDexico Security Initiative, University of Texas at Austin) (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Thousands of asylum seekers left waiting at the US-Mexico border

Deployment of National Guard forces to <a href="https://www.wionews.com/opinions/migrants-will-pay-the-price-of-mexicos-tariff-deal-with-trump-226455">Mexico</a>`s southern border will advance quickly under a migration control deal signed last week with the<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/donald-trump-flaunts-secret-migration-deal-already-revealed-by-mexico-226427"> United States</a>, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Wednesday, although there were no visible signs on the ground late in the day.

Under the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/mexico-reaches-deal-with-us-on-migration-averting-tariff-war-trump-225346">deal signed </a>on Friday, Mexico agreed to take steps to control the flow of people from Central America, including deploying 6,000 members of the country`s National Guard across its border with Guatemala.

"Starting from today, and in the coming days, the deployment is going to progress rapidly," Ebrard said during President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador`s regular morning news conference.

However, a Reuters photographer in Southern Mexico said there was no sign of National Guard forces being deployed late on Wednesday - only regular checkpoints by the army, marines and the Federal Police.

The deal agreed on Friday averted escalating import tariffs of 5 per cent&nbsp;on Mexican goods, which President Donald Trump had vowed to impose unless Mexico did more to curb illegal migration into the United States. Mexico also agreed to a 45-day timeline to show that increased enforcement efforts were effective.

"A lot of things have to happen in 45 days," Ebrard said. "We are going to do what we said we are going to do."

Details of how much Mexico will spend on the border security measures will be made public on Friday, Ebrard said.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/unprecedented-steps-taken-by-trump-administration-to-curb-illegal-immigration-225624">Understanding US-Mexico immigration deal and what drives Central American families to migrate</a>

Lopez Obrador said some of the money needed to pay for the beefed-up migration program will come from selling the former presidential plane, at a minimum price of $150 million, and from the sale of other aircraft used in the prior administration.

&nbsp;Ebrard said Mexico implemented a working group with Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador to coordinate efforts at stemming the tide of people fleeing violence and poverty in Central America.&nbsp;

Mexico will meet on Friday with US&nbsp;immigration officials to hammer out details of the new plan, he added, aiming to secure a commitment to faster asylum proceedings.&nbsp;

United Nations child relief agency UNICEF will be invited to provide assistance on the southern border, focusing on non-accompanied minors fleeing Central America, Ebrard said.

Deployment of National Guard forces to Mexico`s southern border will advance quickly under a migration control deal signed last week with the United States, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Wednesday, although there were no visible signs on the ground late in the day.

Deployment of National Guard forces to Mexico`s southern border will advance quickly under a migration control deal signed last week with the United States, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Wednesday, although there were no visible signs on the ground late in the day. Under the deal signed on Friday, Mexico agreed to take steps to control the flow of people from Central America, including deploying 6,000 members of the country`s National Guard across its border with Guatemala. "Starting from today, and in the coming days, the deployment is going to progress rapidly," Ebrard said during President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador`s regular morning news conference. However, a Reuters photographer in Southern Mexico said there was no sign of National Guard forces being deployed late on Wednesday - only regular checkpoints by the army, marines and the Federal Police. The deal agreed on Friday averted escalating import tariffs of 5 per cent on Mexican goods, which President Donald Trump had vowed to impose unless Mexico did more to curb illegal migration into the United States. Mexico also agreed to a 45-day timeline to show that increased enforcement efforts were effective. "A lot of things have to happen in 45 days," Ebrard said. "We are going to do what we said we are going to do." Details of how much Mexico will spend on the border security measures will be made public on Friday, Ebrard said. Also read: Understanding US-Mexico immigration deal and what drives Central American families to migrate Lopez Obrador said some of the money needed to pay for the beefed-up migration program will come from selling the former presidential plane, at a minimum price of $150 million, and from the sale of other aircraft used in the prior administration. Ebrard said Mexico implemented a working group with Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador to coordinate efforts at stemming the tide of people fleeing violence and poverty in Central America. Mexico will meet on Friday with US immigration officials to hammer out details of the new plan, he added, aiming to secure a commitment to faster asylum proceedings. United Nations child relief agency UNICEF will be invited to provide assistance on the southern border, focusing on non-accompanied minors fleeing Central America, Ebrard said.

Mexico says National Guard deployment to southern border starts on Wednesday

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is celebrating an agreement avoiding US tariffs as a major political and diplomatic triumph for his government.

“We didn’t win everything, but we were able to claim a victory with there being no tariffs,” said chief negotiator Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico’s foreign affairs secretary, on June 9.

The two neighbours have been at odds since United States President Donald Trump on May 30 threatened to hit all Mexican imports with steadily rising tariffs unless Mexico successfully halted the northward flow of Central American migrants fleeing extreme poverty and violence through Mexico toward the United States.

Approximately 80 per cent of Mexican exports are destined for the United States. Tariffs would have devastated Mexico’s economy.

To keep its goods untaxed, Mexico had to convince President Trump that it was serious about stopping migration. After a week of frantic negotiations, Mexico said it would deploy up to 6,000 National Guard troops to its southern border with Guatemala to stop migrants from entering Mexico.

As part of the agreement, a Trump administration program known as “Remain in Mexico,” which forces some migrants to wait in Mexico while their asylum claims are processed in the US, will also be expanded.

At a June 8 rally “for the dignity of Mexico and friendship with the US” held in the border city of Tijuana, López Obrador pledged that Mexico will reinforce its southern border while still “applying the law and respecting the human rights” of migrants.

Ebrard added at the rally that Mexico had emerged from a near trade war with its “dignity intact.”

Doing the dirty work 
 
As a law professor who teaches human rights, I believe that dignity will come at great cost to both Mexico and to the migrants fleeing extreme poverty and violence in Central America.

Many Mexican lawmakers, including allies of the president, have expressed outrage that their immigration policy is now bound by an “immoral and unacceptable” deal that effectively turns Mexico itself into Trump’s border wall.

The agreement violates the campaign promises of López Obrador, who took office in December promising to protect migrants’ rights and pledging not to do the U.S.‘s “dirty work” on border enforcement.

It also violates the Mexican Constitution and international law.

According to international refugee law asylum-seekers with demonstrable fear of persecution in their home countries are entitled to seek protection in the place of their choosing. Mexican law goes further. As of 2011, legitimate asylum-seekers are entitled not just to seek but to be granted asylum in Mexico.

Trump’s economic threats against Mexico may not even have been legal. Both the current North American Free Trade Agreement and the newly signed – but not yet ratified – United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement require most trade between North American countries to be tariff-free.

Even before the recent negotiations, López Obrador was already quietly complying with US demands to do more to prevent migrants from reaching the US.

Between January and May of this year, Mexico detained 74,031 migrants – a 36 per cent increase compared to the same period last year under former Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto. The number of migrants deported from Mexico tripled from 5,717 in December 2018 to 15,654 in April 2019, government statistics show.

Sending troops out to target migrants, as Mexico has now promised to do, will almost certainly result in the excessive use of force against these migrants.

The Mexican National Guard is an untested new military police force with immigration enforcement powers. Its creation in early 2019 was highly controversial in Mexico given the Mexican military’s extraordinarily violent law enforcement record.

Between 2007 and 2017, when troops were helping police fight Mexican drug cartels, the National Human Rights Commission received over 13,700 complaints of human rights violations committed by soldiers against civilians. These included accusations of arbitrary arrests, torture and extrajudicial killings.

Mexico is not a safe country 
 
Beyond avoiding tariffs, Mexico’s main victory in its negotiations with the United States appears to be having resisted pressure to sign a “safe third country” agreement.

Under such an agreement, refugees are required to apply for asylum in the country where they first land and not the country where they ultimately want to settle. This means that one country can reject a person’s asylum application if they have already been granted asylum by another country.

Canada and the US&nbsp;signed such an agreement in 2002, and Trump has been pushing Mexico to do the same since spring 2018. Under this proposal, thousands of migrants in Mexico who have already applied for asylum in the United States and are now waiting for an answer would see their applications invalidated.

Foreign Secretary Ebrard consistently rejected that proposal. He insisted that a safe third country arrangement would violate the Mexican Constitution and Mexico’s international human rights agreements.

But it is not actually clear how the newly expanded “Remain in Mexico” program – the details of which have not yet been released – will differ in practice from a safe third country agreement.

Migrants may end up staying in Mexico for years while they await their asylum hearing in the United States. During that period, Mexico will be responsible for housing, feeding and protecting refugees.

Jorge Castañeda, Mexico’s secretary of foreign affairs from 2000 to 2003, has derided Mexico’s commitment as a “light” safe third country agreement.

The mere idea that Mexico is safe is “a particularly cynical bout of wishful thinking,” as Mexican journalist León Krauze put it in a recent Washington Post op-ed.

Mexico is one of the world’s most dangerous places. An estimated 33,000 people were murdered there last year – twice the average annual homicides in the United States in a country with less than half the population.

Dozens of Central Americans have disappeared from migrant caravans journeying northward in Mexico. Over 90 per cent of migrants say they do not feel safe in Mexico, according to a survey of 500 Central American asylum-seekers conducted in February 2018.

Mexico must do more with less

The “Remain in Mexico” policy is likely to result in a significant increase in claims filed for asylum in Mexico, where the immigration system is already under enormous strain.

Around 29,000 people applied for asylum in Mexico in 2018, according to United Nations data. This year, between January and March, Mexico received 12,716 asylum applications – 43 per cent of last year’s total in just three months.

The Mexican Commission for Refugee Assistance, which processes asylum claims, currently has a two-year backlog.

It will now have to do more with less.

Under López Obrador’s austerity policies, the commission’s 2019 budget was cut 20 per cent, to about $1 million – its lowest budget since 2011.

More migrants, less money, extreme violence and a recalcitrant, unpredictable northern neighbour – these are the ingredients of a refugee crisis, not a diplomatic victory. 
&nbsp;

(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/migrants-will-pay-the-price-of-mexicos-tariff-deal-with-trump-118269">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)&nbsp;

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is celebrating an agreement avoiding US tariffs as a major political and diplomatic triumph for his government. “We didn’t win everything, but we were able to claim a victory with there being no tariffs,” said chief negotiator Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico’s foreign affairs secretary, on June 9.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is celebrating an agreement avoiding US tariffs as a major political and diplomatic triumph for his government. “We didn’t win everything, but we were able to claim a victory with there being no tariffs,” said chief negotiator Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico’s foreign affairs secretary, on June 9. The two neighbours have been at odds since United States President Donald Trump on May 30 threatened to hit all Mexican imports with steadily rising tariffs unless Mexico successfully halted the northward flow of Central American migrants fleeing extreme poverty and violence through Mexico toward the United States. Approximately 80 per cent of Mexican exports are destined for the United States. Tariffs would have devastated Mexico’s economy. To keep its goods untaxed, Mexico had to convince President Trump that it was serious about stopping migration. After a week of frantic negotiations, Mexico said it would deploy up to 6,000 National Guard troops to its southern border with Guatemala to stop migrants from entering Mexico. As part of the agreement, a Trump administration program known as “Remain in Mexico,” which forces some migrants to wait in Mexico while their asylum claims are processed in the US, will also be expanded. At a June 8 rally “for the dignity of Mexico and friendship with the US” held in the border city of Tijuana, López Obrador pledged that Mexico will reinforce its southern border while still “applying the law and respecting the human rights” of migrants. Ebrard added at the rally that Mexico had emerged from a near trade war with its “dignity intact.” Doing the dirty work As a law professor who teaches human rights, I believe that dignity will come at great cost to both Mexico and to the migrants fleeing extreme poverty and violence in Central America. Many Mexican lawmakers, including allies of the president, have expressed outrage that their immigration policy is now bound by an “immoral and unacceptable” deal that effectively turns Mexico itself into Trump’s border wall. The agreement violates the campaign promises of López Obrador, who took office in December promising to protect migrants’ rights and pledging not to do the U.S.‘s “dirty work” on border enforcement. It also violates the Mexican Constitution and international law. According to international refugee law asylum-seekers with demonstrable fear of persecution in their home countries are entitled to seek protection in the place of their choosing. Mexican law goes further. As of 2011, legitimate asylum-seekers are entitled not just to seek but to be granted asylum in Mexico. Trump’s economic threats against Mexico may not even have been legal. Both the current North American Free Trade Agreement and the newly signed – but not yet ratified – United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement require most trade between North American countries to be tariff-free. Even before the recent negotiations, López Obrador was already quietly complying with US demands to do more to prevent migrants from reaching the US. Between January and May of this year, Mexico detained 74,031 migrants – a 36 per cent increase compared to the same period last year under former Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto. The number of migrants deported from Mexico tripled from 5,717 in December 2018 to 15,654 in April 2019, government statistics show. Sending troops out to target migrants, as Mexico has now promised to do, will almost certainly result in the excessive use of force against these migrants. The Mexican National Guard is an untested new military police force with immigration enforcement powers. Its creation in early 2019 was highly controversial in Mexico given the Mexican military’s extraordinarily violent law enforcement record. Between 2007 and 2017, when troops were helping police fight Mexican drug cartels, the National Human Rights Commission received over 13,700 complaints of human rights violations committed by soldiers against civilians. These included accusations of arbitrary arrests, torture and extrajudicial killings. Mexico is not a safe country Beyond avoiding tariffs, Mexico’s main victory in its negotiations with the United States appears to be having resisted pressure to sign a “safe third country” agreement. Under such an agreement, refugees are required to apply for asylum in the country where they first land and not the country where they ultimately want to settle. This means that one country can reject a person’s asylum application if they have already been granted asylum by another country. Canada and the US signed such an agreement in 2002, and Trump has been pushing Mexico to do the same since spring 2018. Under this proposal, thousands of migrants in Mexico who have already applied for asylum in the United States and are now waiting for an answer would see their applications invalidated. Foreign Secretary Ebrard consistently rejected that proposal. He insisted that a safe third country arrangement would violate the Mexican Constitution and Mexico’s international human rights agreements. But it is not actually clear how the newly expanded “Remain in Mexico” program – the details of which have not yet been released – will differ in practice from a safe third country agreement. Migrants may end up staying in Mexico for years while they await their asylum hearing in the United States. During that period, Mexico will be responsible for housing, feeding and protecting refugees. Jorge Castañeda, Mexico’s secretary of foreign affairs from 2000 to 2003, has derided Mexico’s commitment as a “light” safe third country agreement. The mere idea that Mexico is safe is “a particularly cynical bout of wishful thinking,” as Mexican journalist León Krauze put it in a recent Washington Post op-ed. Mexico is one of the world’s most dangerous places. An estimated 33,000 people were murdered there last year – twice the average annual homicides in the United States in a country with less than half the population. Dozens of Central Americans have disappeared from migrant caravans journeying northward in Mexico. Over 90 per cent of migrants say they do not feel safe in Mexico, according to a survey of 500 Central American asylum-seekers conducted in February 2018. Mexico must do more with less The “Remain in Mexico” policy is likely to result in a significant increase in claims filed for asylum in Mexico, where the immigration system is already under enormous strain. Around 29,000 people applied for asylum in Mexico in 2018, according to United Nations data. This year, between January and March, Mexico received 12,716 asylum applications – 43 per cent of last year’s total in just three months. The Mexican Commission for Refugee Assistance, which processes asylum claims, currently has a two-year backlog. It will now have to do more with less. Under López Obrador’s austerity policies, the commission’s 2019 budget was cut 20 per cent, to about $1 million – its lowest budget since 2011. More migrants, less money, extreme violence and a recalcitrant, unpredictable northern neighbour – these are the ingredients of a refugee crisis, not a diplomatic victory. (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Migrants will pay the price of Mexico’s tariff deal with Trump

Mexico and the United States might consider additional steps next month to restrict illegal immigration from Central America, including measures to bind Brazil and Panama into their efforts, Mexico`s foreign minister said on Monday.&nbsp;

Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said the measures could be needed if a deal announced last week between Washington and Mexico fails to reduce within 45 days the numbers of migrants entering Mexico, mainly from Central America, on their way to the US border.&nbsp;

The deal averted import tariffs on all Mexican goods that President Donald Trump had threatened to impose unless Mexico committed to do more to fight illegal immigration into the United States.&nbsp;

US stocks were higher on Monday after the United States shelved the tariff plan, easing worries about the impact of another trade war on the global economy. The Mexican peso was up more than 2 per cent against the dollar but major risks remain for the currency.

Under the agreement, Mexico will rapidly expand a program under which migrants applying for asylum in the United States wait out the process in Mexico. It has also pledged to reinforce its southern border with Guatemala with 6,000 members of its National Guard militarised police force.

But Trump said on Monday he would go ahead with the proposed tariffs if Mexico`s Congress did not back part of the deal that may need lawmakers` approval.

"We do not anticipate a problem with the vote but, if for any reason the approval is not forthcoming, tariffs will be reinstated," he wrote on Twitter.&nbsp; 
Ebrard told a news conference that Trump was referring to possible further measures to pressure countries other than the United States to share the burden.

BRAZIL, PANAMA, GUATEMALA&nbsp;

"If the measures we are proposing are not successful, we have to discuss with the United States and with other countries, like Guatemala, Panama and Brazil," he said. "It is a regional system."

"If we have to participate in a regional model like the one I have just described, we would have to present that to Congress," Ebrard said. 
Many of the migrants are families trying to escape poverty and violent crime in Central America, one of the most impoverished areas in the Western Hemisphere.&nbsp;

Asylum seekers from El Salvador and Honduras first pass through Guatemala when fleeing their homes, while Cubans and Haitians often fly first to Panama before heading to the United States through Mexico.&nbsp; 
Migrants from African countries regularly fly to Brazil before making the arduous journey north.

While he did not go into detail, Ebrard suggested that asylum seekers might have to seek refuge in the first country they reached after leaving their homeland.

That is different from a long-standing US demand that Mexico be declared a safe place for asylum seekers, requiring them to seek refuge in Mexico if they passed through the country on the way to the United States. That demand was put on the table again by US negotiators last week, but was not accepted by Mexico.

Any plan that called on Brazil, Guatemala or Panama to take in more asylum seekers would require cooperation from those countries.

US&nbsp;border officers apprehended more than 132,000 people crossing from Mexico in May, the highest monthly level since 2006. Trump, who has called the surge in migrants an "invasion," had threatened to keep raising duties up to 25% unless Mexico did more to curb it.

The Trump administration said on Monday that Kenneth Cuccinelli would serve as the new acting director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, which oversees the nation`s legal immigration system. Cuccinelli, a former attorney general of Virginia, has developed a reputation as a hardliner on immigration.&nbsp;

He has called for denying citizenship to US-born children whose parents are in the country illegally, and authorized law enforcement officials to investigate the immigration status of anyone they stopped.

Mexico had no specific target for the reduction of migrant numbers, Ebrard said. Still, Martha Barcena, Mexico`s ambassador to Washington, told CBS News on the weekend there had been discussion of reducing the numbers to levels of around 2018.

Ebrard also said there was no agreement between the United States and Mexico to purchase more agricultural products under the accord, despite Trump saying over the weekend that Mexico had agreed to buy "large quantities" from US farmers.&nbsp;

Ebrard said he thought Trump might be making a calculation based on Mexican agricultural imports when freed from the threat of tariffs.

Mexico and the United States might consider additional steps next month to restrict illegal immigration from Central America, including measures to bind Brazil and Panama into their efforts, Mexico`s foreign minister said on Monday.

Mexico and the United States might consider additional steps next month to restrict illegal immigration from Central America, including measures to bind Brazil and Panama into their efforts, Mexico`s foreign minister said on Monday. Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said the measures could be needed if a deal announced last week between Washington and Mexico fails to reduce within 45 days the numbers of migrants entering Mexico, mainly from Central America, on their way to the US border. The deal averted import tariffs on all Mexican goods that President Donald Trump had threatened to impose unless Mexico committed to do more to fight illegal immigration into the United States. US stocks were higher on Monday after the United States shelved the tariff plan, easing worries about the impact of another trade war on the global economy. The Mexican peso was up more than 2 per cent against the dollar but major risks remain for the currency. Under the agreement, Mexico will rapidly expand a program under which migrants applying for asylum in the United States wait out the process in Mexico. It has also pledged to reinforce its southern border with Guatemala with 6,000 members of its National Guard militarised police force. But Trump said on Monday he would go ahead with the proposed tariffs if Mexico`s Congress did not back part of the deal that may need lawmakers` approval. "We do not anticipate a problem with the vote but, if for any reason the approval is not forthcoming, tariffs will be reinstated," he wrote on Twitter. Ebrard told a news conference that Trump was referring to possible further measures to pressure countries other than the United States to share the burden. BRAZIL, PANAMA, GUATEMALA "If the measures we are proposing are not successful, we have to discuss with the United States and with other countries, like Guatemala, Panama and Brazil," he said. "It is a regional system." "If we have to participate in a regional model like the one I have just described, we would have to present that to Congress," Ebrard said. Many of the migrants are families trying to escape poverty and violent crime in Central America, one of the most impoverished areas in the Western Hemisphere. Asylum seekers from El Salvador and Honduras first pass through Guatemala when fleeing their homes, while Cubans and Haitians often fly first to Panama before heading to the United States through Mexico. Migrants from African countries regularly fly to Brazil before making the arduous journey north. While he did not go into detail, Ebrard suggested that asylum seekers might have to seek refuge in the first country they reached after leaving their homeland. That is different from a long-standing US demand that Mexico be declared a safe place for asylum seekers, requiring them to seek refuge in Mexico if they passed through the country on the way to the United States. That demand was put on the table again by US negotiators last week, but was not accepted by Mexico. Any plan that called on Brazil, Guatemala or Panama to take in more asylum seekers would require cooperation from those countries. US border officers apprehended more than 132,000 people crossing from Mexico in May, the highest monthly level since 2006. Trump, who has called the surge in migrants an "invasion," had threatened to keep raising duties up to 25% unless Mexico did more to curb it. The Trump administration said on Monday that Kenneth Cuccinelli would serve as the new acting director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, which oversees the nation`s legal immigration system. Cuccinelli, a former attorney general of Virginia, has developed a reputation as a hardliner on immigration. He has called for denying citizenship to US-born children whose parents are in the country illegally, and authorized law enforcement officials to investigate the immigration status of anyone they stopped. Mexico had no specific target for the reduction of migrant numbers, Ebrard said. Still, Martha Barcena, Mexico`s ambassador to Washington, told CBS News on the weekend there had been discussion of reducing the numbers to levels of around 2018. Ebrard also said there was no agreement between the United States and Mexico to purchase more agricultural products under the accord, despite Trump saying over the weekend that Mexico had agreed to buy "large quantities" from US farmers. Ebrard said he thought Trump might be making a calculation based on Mexican agricultural imports when freed from the threat of tariffs.

Mexico eyes Brazil for US asylum deal, Trump revives tariff threat

On Saturday, at the busiest crossing point along Mexico`s porous southern border with Guatemala, evidence of <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-says-immigration-deal-will-work-if-mexico-plays-its-part-225505">Mexico`s promised crackdown</a> on waves of new arrivals trying to reach the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/mexico-reaches-deal-with-us-on-migration-averting-tariff-war-trump-225346">United States </a>was nowhere to be seen.

Within sight of a bridge connecting Mexico to Guatemala, a fleet of about 16 rafts carried migrants hoping to escape poverty and gang-related violence in Central America.

A few police appeared briefly at dawn on the Mexican shore, people said, but they vanished as fast. Nothing else outwardly changed despite a deal struck in Washington on Friday in which Mexico vowed to stem the northern flow of migrants with a crackdown on illegal crossings across the Guatemala border.

The travellers, often exploited by cross-border guides called "coyotes" and security forces out to make a buck, said the business of illegal immigration was unaltered by the deal in Washington.&nbsp;

Over the past few months, Mexico has stepped up efforts to stem the flow of immigrants. In May, authorities detained nearly 23,000 migrants, triple the number in January and about twice the monthly average in the first five months of last year.

However, most of that activity has taken place further from the border between Chiapas state and Guatemala. On Friday, negotiators agreed to send up to 6,000 members of the National Guard security force into Chiapas after Trump`s calls for Mexico to secure the frontier.&nbsp;

Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said that deployment would start on Monday. For now, the decades` old business of ferrying people across the river to dodge usual passport controls has not been interrupted.

Another common practice that undermines Mexico`s efforts is corruption among low-paid police forces.

Seven Salvadorians and Hondurans who said they crossed the river by raft on Friday at dawn told Reuters that Chiapas state police officers had pulled them out of small public buses on their way to the Mexican border town of Tapachula where they were heading to seek papers.

"They took 100 Mexican pesos ($5) from me, 200 from him, about 1,000 altogether between us - and that other family," said Jaime Mejia, 44, a Salvadoran pastor, squatting on a Tapachula sidewalk, nodding down the block at clutches of bedraggled men, women and children perched among bags and bundles.

The toll paid to the police, he said, left the group without money to pay for lodging. Chiapas security officials and Mexico`s interior ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Mejia said he fled the town of La Libertad, El Salvador, after members of the country`s dominant gang, MS-13, told him to surrender his church to them to stash their weapons and drugs.&nbsp;

Asked about the immigration talks between the Trump and Lopez Obrador governments that could decide their fate, Mejia and more than 20 other migrants who spoke with Reuters on Friday and Saturday shrugged, shook their heads and looked blankly.

Friday`s deal averted a US-Mexico tariff war, with Mexico also agreeing to expand asylum programs. President Donald Trump had threatened to impose 5% import tariffs on all Mexican goods starting on Monday if Mexico did not commit to do more to tighten its borders.

Tapachula, a first stop for many migrants on their journey north, was overflowing with migrants, from Central America, Cuba and elsewhere.

After the shakedown by police, Mejia and his group headed to the city`s office of the Mexican refugee agency to apply for asylum in Mexico. Each one was given a number to reappear days later for an interview, Mejia said.&nbsp;

But they found that the migration shelters -only three in town - were overflowing. With no money left, they had to bed down in the street.

Olga Sanchez, head of the Jesus El Buen Pastor migrant shelter, said she had been caring for about 700 people since about November. Among those at the shelter were about 200 children.

On Saturday, at the busiest crossing point along Mexico`s porous southern border with Guatemala, evidence of Mexico`s promised crackdown on waves of new arrivals trying to reach the United States was nowhere to be seen.

On Saturday, at the busiest crossing point along Mexico`s porous southern border with Guatemala, evidence of Mexico`s promised crackdown on waves of new arrivals trying to reach the United States was nowhere to be seen. Within sight of a bridge connecting Mexico to Guatemala, a fleet of about 16 rafts carried migrants hoping to escape poverty and gang-related violence in Central America. A few police appeared briefly at dawn on the Mexican shore, people said, but they vanished as fast. Nothing else outwardly changed despite a deal struck in Washington on Friday in which Mexico vowed to stem the northern flow of migrants with a crackdown on illegal crossings across the Guatemala border. The travellers, often exploited by cross-border guides called "coyotes" and security forces out to make a buck, said the business of illegal immigration was unaltered by the deal in Washington. Over the past few months, Mexico has stepped up efforts to stem the flow of immigrants. In May, authorities detained nearly 23,000 migrants, triple the number in January and about twice the monthly average in the first five months of last year. However, most of that activity has taken place further from the border between Chiapas state and Guatemala. On Friday, negotiators agreed to send up to 6,000 members of the National Guard security force into Chiapas after Trump`s calls for Mexico to secure the frontier. Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said that deployment would start on Monday. For now, the decades` old business of ferrying people across the river to dodge usual passport controls has not been interrupted. Another common practice that undermines Mexico`s efforts is corruption among low-paid police forces. Seven Salvadorians and Hondurans who said they crossed the river by raft on Friday at dawn told Reuters that Chiapas state police officers had pulled them out of small public buses on their way to the Mexican border town of Tapachula where they were heading to seek papers. "They took 100 Mexican pesos ($5) from me, 200 from him, about 1,000 altogether between us - and that other family," said Jaime Mejia, 44, a Salvadoran pastor, squatting on a Tapachula sidewalk, nodding down the block at clutches of bedraggled men, women and children perched among bags and bundles. The toll paid to the police, he said, left the group without money to pay for lodging. Chiapas security officials and Mexico`s interior ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Mejia said he fled the town of La Libertad, El Salvador, after members of the country`s dominant gang, MS-13, told him to surrender his church to them to stash their weapons and drugs. Asked about the immigration talks between the Trump and Lopez Obrador governments that could decide their fate, Mejia and more than 20 other migrants who spoke with Reuters on Friday and Saturday shrugged, shook their heads and looked blankly. Friday`s deal averted a US-Mexico tariff war, with Mexico also agreeing to expand asylum programs. President Donald Trump had threatened to impose 5% import tariffs on all Mexican goods starting on Monday if Mexico did not commit to do more to tighten its borders. Tapachula, a first stop for many migrants on their journey north, was overflowing with migrants, from Central America, Cuba and elsewhere. After the shakedown by police, Mejia and his group headed to the city`s office of the Mexican refugee agency to apply for asylum in Mexico. Each one was given a number to reappear days later for an interview, Mejia said. But they found that the migration shelters -only three in town - were overflowing. With no money left, they had to bed down in the street. Olga Sanchez, head of the Jesus El Buen Pastor migrant shelter, said she had been caring for about 700 people since about November. Among those at the shelter were about 200 children.

It's business as usual at Mexico's southern border despite Trump deal

The US&nbsp;House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation to end the threat of deportation that has long hung over undocumented immigrants known as "<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/end-of-the-american-dream-for-8000-indian-dreamers-19919">Dreamers</a>" who entered the United States when they were children.&nbsp;

By a vote of 237-187, the Democratic-controlled House approved the legislation despite opposition from the White House, which said the move would "reward illegal immigration."

Only seven Republicans voted for the bill.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-says-no-amnesty-for-dreamers-signals-support-in-broader-deal-191666">Trump says no amnesty for 'Dreamers,' signals support in broader deal</a>

There have been no signs that the Republican-controlled Senate would consider the House bill, likely leaving this Democratic initiative to be fought over during the 2020 presidential and congressional election campaigns.

Earlier in his administration, Republican President Donald Trump said he wanted to help Dreamers, many of whom were very young when they arrived in the United States with their parents.

But following a series of failed negotiations, Trump mainly has focused on clamping down on immigration and building a wall along the US-Mexico border to keep out undocumented immigrants from Central America and other countries.

The Democratic bill would shield an estimated 2 million Dreamers from deportation if they meet certain criteria, and put them on a path to US citizenship. 
Some of these immigrants have had temporary protections under a program put in place in 2012 by President Barack Obama. Trump`s move to end that program is being challenged in court.

Referring to the young immigrants, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler said during debate of the bill,&nbsp;"Many did not even know they were not born here and were not American citizens until they found they could not get a drivers license or in-state tuition rates for college."

The House bill also would protect from deportation another 460,000 immigrants who have been legally staying in the United States under a temporary protection program aimed at countries suffering from natural disasters, wars and other traumas.

Trump has been phasing out this program.

In its statement threatening a presidential veto, the White House said that legislation to protect Dreamers would have to be coupled with other immigration provisions. These include tightening US asylum law, providing money to build a border wall, and encouraging the immigration of high-skilled workers rather than relatives of immigrants already in the United States.

Those ideas have drawn opposition from many Democrats and immigration advocacy groups.

The US House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation to end the threat of deportation that has long hung over undocumented immigrants known as "Dreamers" who entered the United States when they were children.

The US House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation to end the threat of deportation that has long hung over undocumented immigrants known as "Dreamers" who entered the United States when they were children. By a vote of 237-187, the Democratic-controlled House approved the legislation despite opposition from the White House, which said the move would "reward illegal immigration." Only seven Republicans voted for the bill. Also read: Trump says no amnesty for 'Dreamers,' signals support in broader deal There have been no signs that the Republican-controlled Senate would consider the House bill, likely leaving this Democratic initiative to be fought over during the 2020 presidential and congressional election campaigns. Earlier in his administration, Republican President Donald Trump said he wanted to help Dreamers, many of whom were very young when they arrived in the United States with their parents. But following a series of failed negotiations, Trump mainly has focused on clamping down on immigration and building a wall along the US-Mexico border to keep out undocumented immigrants from Central America and other countries. The Democratic bill would shield an estimated 2 million Dreamers from deportation if they meet certain criteria, and put them on a path to US citizenship. Some of these immigrants have had temporary protections under a program put in place in 2012 by President Barack Obama. Trump`s move to end that program is being challenged in court. Referring to the young immigrants, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler said during debate of the bill, "Many did not even know they were not born here and were not American citizens until they found they could not get a drivers license or in-state tuition rates for college." The House bill also would protect from deportation another 460,000 immigrants who have been legally staying in the United States under a temporary protection program aimed at countries suffering from natural disasters, wars and other traumas. Trump has been phasing out this program. In its statement threatening a presidential veto, the White House said that legislation to protect Dreamers would have to be coupled with other immigration provisions. These include tightening US asylum law, providing money to build a border wall, and encouraging the immigration of high-skilled workers rather than relatives of immigrants already in the United States. Those ideas have drawn opposition from many Democrats and immigration advocacy groups.

US House votes to protect 'Dreamer' immigrants amid White House opposition

US immigration authorities on Friday said the government would limit which migrant children who enter the country alone qualify for special protections in the United States, the latest move by the Trump administration to tighten immigration restrictions.

President Donald Trump has become increasingly aggressive in his fight to stem the surge of migrants crossing the US border from Mexico. On Thursday he announced plans to <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-plans-5-tariff-on-mexican-imports-over-illegal-immigration-222998">slap tariffs on goods from Mexico</a> if it does not act to stop the flow of migrants.

Children who are not accompanied by an adult have a special status under US law, which allows them to make their claims to a United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) asylum officer, in a non-adversarial setting, instead of an immigration judge. If they are denied, they get a second chance in immigration court.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/mexico-eyes-steps-to-cut-immigrant-flows-to-us-border-official-223382">Mexico eyes steps to cut immigrant flows to US border: Official</a>

USCIS spokeswoman Jessica Collins said the agency was rescinding a memorandum put in place by the administration of Democratic President Barack Obama that allowed children to keep their special status even if they turned 18 or reunited with a parent or legal guardian before filing an asylum application.&nbsp;

Trump has repeatedly said many of the protections for migrants are "legal loopholes" that have spurred much of the migration of children.&nbsp;

U.S. border patrol agents have apprehended almost 45,000 unaccompanied children at the southwest border since October. Most of them are teenagers and have often endured trauma and abuse in their home countries and on the journey north.

USCIS said it was returning to a previous policy from 2009. Immigration advocates said the move could have a wide impact as many unaccompanied minors reunite with parents in the United States.&nbsp;

"Congress must reform the law to address the underlying issues fueling the border crisis and encouraging unaccompanied minors to make the dangerous journey to the United States,” Collins said.

The new guidance, first reported by BuzzFeed News, is the latest example of moves by the Trump administration to tighten immigration policy in the absence of Congressional action. It goes into effect on June 30, USCIS said.

Maria Odom, vice president for legal services at Kids In Need of Defense, who was the agency`s ombudsman when the 2013 memo was issued, said it was often not practical for children to quickly file for asylum.&nbsp;

“We have many kids who are so traumatized, and it takes a considerable amount of time to get them to talk,” she said. Children also are often moved from shelter to shelter when they initially arrive in the United States.

The memo was issued by the outgoing director of USCIS, Francis Cissna, the latest casualty of Trump`s purge of high-level officials of the Department of Homeland Security over concerns they were not doing enough to stem the flow of migrants. Trump has also threatened tariffs on all Mexican goods if Mexico does not do more to stop migration to the United States.

Cissna, who was popular with immigration restrictionists, made a number of rule changes during his tenure that have made it more difficult for legal immigrants to come to and stay in the United States. Cissna`s resignation is effective June 1.

US immigration authorities on Friday said the government would limit which migrant children who enter the country alone qualify for special protections in the United States, the latest move by the Trump administration to tighten immigration restrictions.

US immigration authorities on Friday said the government would limit which migrant children who enter the country alone qualify for special protections in the United States, the latest move by the Trump administration to tighten immigration restrictions. President Donald Trump has become increasingly aggressive in his fight to stem the surge of migrants crossing the US border from Mexico. On Thursday he announced plans to slap tariffs on goods from Mexico if it does not act to stop the flow of migrants. Children who are not accompanied by an adult have a special status under US law, which allows them to make their claims to a United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) asylum officer, in a non-adversarial setting, instead of an immigration judge. If they are denied, they get a second chance in immigration court. Also read: Mexico eyes steps to cut immigrant flows to US border: Official USCIS spokeswoman Jessica Collins said the agency was rescinding a memorandum put in place by the administration of Democratic President Barack Obama that allowed children to keep their special status even if they turned 18 or reunited with a parent or legal guardian before filing an asylum application. Trump has repeatedly said many of the protections for migrants are "legal loopholes" that have spurred much of the migration of children. U.S. border patrol agents have apprehended almost 45,000 unaccompanied children at the southwest border since October. Most of them are teenagers and have often endured trauma and abuse in their home countries and on the journey north. USCIS said it was returning to a previous policy from 2009. Immigration advocates said the move could have a wide impact as many unaccompanied minors reunite with parents in the United States. "Congress must reform the law to address the underlying issues fueling the border crisis and encouraging unaccompanied minors to make the dangerous journey to the United States,” Collins said. The new guidance, first reported by BuzzFeed News, is the latest example of moves by the Trump administration to tighten immigration policy in the absence of Congressional action. It goes into effect on June 30, USCIS said. Maria Odom, vice president for legal services at Kids In Need of Defense, who was the agency`s ombudsman when the 2013 memo was issued, said it was often not practical for children to quickly file for asylum. “We have many kids who are so traumatized, and it takes a considerable amount of time to get them to talk,” she said. Children also are often moved from shelter to shelter when they initially arrive in the United States. The memo was issued by the outgoing director of USCIS, Francis Cissna, the latest casualty of Trump`s purge of high-level officials of the Department of Homeland Security over concerns they were not doing enough to stem the flow of migrants. Trump has also threatened tariffs on all Mexican goods if Mexico does not do more to stop migration to the United States. Cissna, who was popular with immigration restrictionists, made a number of rule changes during his tenure that have made it more difficult for legal immigrants to come to and stay in the United States. Cissna`s resignation is effective June 1.

US limits protections for some migrant children

A Maltese armed forces patrol boat picked up more than 200 migrants from two dinghies in the Mediterranean and was bringing them to Malta on Saturday, a spokesman said.

At least one pregnant woman and a number of children were believed to be among the 216 rescued migrants. Their nationality was not known.

An AFM spokesman said a patrol boat had been deployed to a sinking dinghy south of Malta on Friday. After picking up the migrants, it was diverted to a second dinghy while on its way to Malta, picking up those migrants as well.

The armed forces said that with good weather conditions prevailing, departures of migrants from <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/two-dead-in-libya-attack-claimed-by-islamic-state-report-219694">Libya</a>, Tunisia, and Algeria had increased in the past two days, resulting in 12 migrant boats arriving in Sicily, Sardinia, and Lampedusa.

The Libyan coast guard said on Friday it had rescued 290 migrants from inflatable rafts near the capital Tripoli.

A Maltese armed forces patrol boat picked up more than 200 migrants from two dinghies in the Mediterranean and was bringing them to Malta on Saturday, a spokesman said.

A Maltese armed forces patrol boat picked up more than 200 migrants from two dinghies in the Mediterranean and was bringing them to Malta on Saturday, a spokesman said. At least one pregnant woman and a number of children were believed to be among the 216 rescued migrants. Their nationality was not known. An AFM spokesman said a patrol boat had been deployed to a sinking dinghy south of Malta on Friday. After picking up the migrants, it was diverted to a second dinghy while on its way to Malta, picking up those migrants as well. The armed forces said that with good weather conditions prevailing, departures of migrants from Libya, Tunisia, and Algeria had increased in the past two days, resulting in 12 migrant boats arriving in Sicily, Sardinia, and Lampedusa. The Libyan coast guard said on Friday it had rescued 290 migrants from inflatable rafts near the capital Tripoli.

Malta rescues 216 migrants in upsurge of Mediterranean crossings

This segment of WION brings to you top stories of the morning from across the globe. Watch this video to get updated with the latest information.

WION Speed News: Watch top national and international news of the morning, May 17th 2019

The Trump administration has revised training guidelines for asylum officers in ways that could make it harder for <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-plans-to-give-migrants-dna-tests-to-prove-family-ties-215190">migrants seeking refuge in the United States</a> to pass an initial screening.

The revisions to a lesson plan used by hundreds of asylum officers suggest the Trump administration is finding new ways to narrow who can access asylum as bolder policy proposals with that same goal have been blocked by federals courts, said former government officials and immigration experts who reviewed the internal plan that was shared with Reuters. The changes could potentially lead to more denials and deportations before migrants' full cases can be heard, they said.

Jessica Collins, a spokeswoman for US&nbsp;Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which oversees asylum applications, said the agency periodically updates its training documents and that it processes all claims on a case-by-case basis.

The lesson plan has been revised in 2006, 2014 and February 2017. The new version, dated April 30, goes into effect this month, USCIS said.

The ballooning number of mostly Central American families turning themselves into border agents and asking for asylum has pushed US&nbsp;border agencies to a breaking point. In March, more than 100,000 people were caught at the US-Mexico border, the highest monthly level in more than a decade.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-says-did-not-raise-election-meddling-with-putin-in-phone-call-216036">US&nbsp;President Donald Trump</a> has claimed the migrants are exploiting "loopholes" in immigration law and says many asylum claims are fraudulent.

The first step in the long US&nbsp;asylum process is an interview by a USCIS official specially trained in asylum and refugee law to determine whether a migrant has a "credible fear" of returning to their home country.

If they pass that first hurdle, a low bar, they go on to immigration court where a judge can grant them asylum if they prove they have been persecuted because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.

Around three-quarters of the thousands of monthly applicants regularly pass the first "credible fear" interviews, according to government data. But most Central American migrants fleeing general violence and corruption ultimately do not qualify for asylum.

Trump has said repeatedly that the standards for entry into the United States are too lenient.

'Big fat con job'

The revised lesson plan is "a significant and disturbing step towards making it more difficult to pass credible fear interviews," said Victoria Neilson, who worked in the USCIS refugee and asylum division during the Obama administration.

The new plan deletes a paragraph from the previous guidance that told "credible fear" interviewers to consider that asylum seekers may not have all the evidence to prove their claims when they first arrive in the United States.

Guidance to consider trauma and cultural background when assessing credibility has also been deleted. Instructions to be warier of fraud were inserted.

Stephen Legomsky, a former USCIS chief counsel said that asylum seekers who arrive in the United States without documents to prove their persecution back home have to rely on their own testimony. "Without taking cultural and psychological factors into account, evaluating the person's credibility becomes nearly impossible," Legomsky said.

USCIS' Collins said the agency's officers take into account "relevant country conditions information" and adhere "to all applicable laws, regulations, policies, and precedent decisions."

Currently, asylum officers are required to complete weeks of in-person training followed by regular ongoing refresher courses.

The White House is seeking $23 million of funding to train border patrol agents to perform "credible fear" interviews that are usually done by specialized USCIS asylum officers. It was not clear whether or not this new lesson plan would be used to train border patrol agents.

US&nbsp;Customs and Border Protection, which oversees the Border Patrol, referred questions about its agents conducting interviews to the US&nbsp;Department of Homeland Security, which did not respond to a request for comment.

An April 29 White House memo said agencies should "reprioritize" immigration officials to do "credible fear" screenings, without specifically mentioning Border Patrol.

Migrants who pass the initial "credible fear" interview are often allowed stay in the United States until their asylum cases are decided, a process that can take months or years because of a massive backlog of immigration court cases.

The Trump administration has said people are gaming the legal system in order to stay in the country.

At a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan on March 29, Trump called the asylum process "a big, fat con job."

"You have people coming up, they are all met by the lawyers," he said, "and they say, say the following phrase, 'I'm very afraid for my life' ... and then I look at the guy, he looks like he just got out of the ring, he's the heavyweight champion of the world."

Under a new Trump policy started in January, hundreds of asylum seekers have been forced to return to wait in Mexico while their cases lumber through US&nbsp;courts. That policy is being challenged by lawsuits.

Trump has promised to build a wall along the US-Mexico border but a physical barrier would have little effect on migrants who turn themselves into officials.

By changing the rules for asylum screenings the government "is erecting an invisible wall," for those seeking protection, said Dree Collopy, an immigration attorney at a Washington, DC-based law firm.

The Trump administration has revised training guidelines for asylum officers in ways that could make it harder for migrants seeking refuge in the United States to pass an initial screening.

The Trump administration has revised training guidelines for asylum officers in ways that could make it harder for migrants seeking refuge in the United States to pass an initial screening. The revisions to a lesson plan used by hundreds of asylum officers suggest the Trump administration is finding new ways to narrow who can access asylum as bolder policy proposals with that same goal have been blocked by federals courts, said former government officials and immigration experts who reviewed the internal plan that was shared with Reuters. The changes could potentially lead to more denials and deportations before migrants' full cases can be heard, they said. Jessica Collins, a spokeswoman for US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which oversees asylum applications, said the agency periodically updates its training documents and that it processes all claims on a case-by-case basis. The lesson plan has been revised in 2006, 2014 and February 2017. The new version, dated April 30, goes into effect this month, USCIS said. The ballooning number of mostly Central American families turning themselves into border agents and asking for asylum has pushed US border agencies to a breaking point. In March, more than 100,000 people were caught at the US-Mexico border, the highest monthly level in more than a decade. US President Donald Trump has claimed the migrants are exploiting "loopholes" in immigration law and says many asylum claims are fraudulent. The first step in the long US asylum process is an interview by a USCIS official specially trained in asylum and refugee law to determine whether a migrant has a "credible fear" of returning to their home country. If they pass that first hurdle, a low bar, they go on to immigration court where a judge can grant them asylum if they prove they have been persecuted because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. Around three-quarters of the thousands of monthly applicants regularly pass the first "credible fear" interviews, according to government data. But most Central American migrants fleeing general violence and corruption ultimately do not qualify for asylum. Trump has said repeatedly that the standards for entry into the United States are too lenient. 'Big fat con job' The revised lesson plan is "a significant and disturbing step towards making it more difficult to pass credible fear interviews," said Victoria Neilson, who worked in the USCIS refugee and asylum division during the Obama administration. The new plan deletes a paragraph from the previous guidance that told "credible fear" interviewers to consider that asylum seekers may not have all the evidence to prove their claims when they first arrive in the United States. Guidance to consider trauma and cultural background when assessing credibility has also been deleted. Instructions to be warier of fraud were inserted. Stephen Legomsky, a former USCIS chief counsel said that asylum seekers who arrive in the United States without documents to prove their persecution back home have to rely on their own testimony. "Without taking cultural and psychological factors into account, evaluating the person's credibility becomes nearly impossible," Legomsky said. USCIS' Collins said the agency's officers take into account "relevant country conditions information" and adhere "to all applicable laws, regulations, policies, and precedent decisions." Currently, asylum officers are required to complete weeks of in-person training followed by regular ongoing refresher courses. The White House is seeking $23 million of funding to train border patrol agents to perform "credible fear" interviews that are usually done by specialized USCIS asylum officers. It was not clear whether or not this new lesson plan would be used to train border patrol agents. US Customs and Border Protection, which oversees the Border Patrol, referred questions about its agents conducting interviews to the US Department of Homeland Security, which did not respond to a request for comment. An April 29 White House memo said agencies should "reprioritize" immigration officials to do "credible fear" screenings, without specifically mentioning Border Patrol. Migrants who pass the initial "credible fear" interview are often allowed stay in the United States until their asylum cases are decided, a process that can take months or years because of a massive backlog of immigration court cases. The Trump administration has said people are gaming the legal system in order to stay in the country. At a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan on March 29, Trump called the asylum process "a big, fat con job." "You have people coming up, they are all met by the lawyers," he said, "and they say, say the following phrase, 'I'm very afraid for my life' ... and then I look at the guy, he looks like he just got out of the ring, he's the heavyweight champion of the world." Under a new Trump policy started in January, hundreds of asylum seekers have been forced to return to wait in Mexico while their cases lumber through US courts. That policy is being challenged by lawsuits. Trump has promised to build a wall along the US-Mexico border but a physical barrier would have little effect on migrants who turn themselves into officials. By changing the rules for asylum screenings the government "is erecting an invisible wall," for those seeking protection, said Dree Collopy, an immigration attorney at a Washington, DC-based law firm.

Trump administration's new training guidelines for asylum screenings reflect tougher US stance on migrants

New Mexico`s state fairgrounds will begin to house dozens of migrant families to take the pressure off border cities facing a surge in asylum seekers with no help from the federal government,<a href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/photos/america-to-decide-fate-of-key-houses-in-us-midterm-elections-175800&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjdn7azn_rhAhXKLI8KHW1jAtUQFjAHegQIBhAB&amp;usg=AOvVaw27BocEl-9IUo-99BcF_oAw"> Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham</a> said on Tuesday.

Dormitories at state-run Expo New Mexico in Albuquerque could eventually provide temporary accommodation to up to 240 people, making it one of the largest migrant shelters in the state, according to state and city authorities.

Lujan Grisham has called for a humanitarian response to the rise in asylum seekers, condemning a "charade of fear-mongering" by US&nbsp;President Donald Trump, who has variously warned of a migrant "crisis" and "invasion" at the country`s southern border with Mexico.

"The federal government has not provided shelter or timely adjudication at the border leaving migrants without any means to make arrangements to get to their sponsors or family members in the United States," according to a joint statement by the governor and Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller, both Democrats.

Migrant shelters in border cities like El Paso, Texas, and Las Cruces, New Mexico, are at or near capacity as record numbers of mainly Central American families cross the border to seek asylum.

The mayors of New Mexico`s three largest cities - Las Cruces, Albuquerque and Santa Fe - have offered resources to help charities and faith-based organizations care for migrants after they are dropped off by US immigration authorities.

"Burqueños (Albuquerque residents) of every faith, ethnicity, and background have come together where the federal government has failed," Keller said in the statement.&nbsp;

Las Cruces has received over 2,400 migrants since the US&nbsp;Border Patrol began to release them directly to shelters on April 12, said Claudia Tristan, a spokeswoman for Lujan Grisham.&nbsp;

Expo New Mexico will absorb the cost of housing migrants and no scheduled activities will be disrupted at the area which hosts the annual state fair, Tristan said.

The centre can immediately house 60 migrants and has the capacity to house up to 240 once minor repairs are undertaken to dormitories, said spokesman Wyndham Kemsley.

Charities will continue to provide food and medical services to migrants, who will spend a night or two at the centre before travelling on to final destinations in the United States, the statement said.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokeswoman Leticia Zamarripa said her agency would work with El Paso`s Annunciation House migrant organization to coordinate transportation of migrants to the Expo New Mexico.&nbsp;

US Customs and Border Protection, which runs US&nbsp;Border Patrol, did not respond to a request for comment.

New Mexico`s state fairgrounds will begin to house dozens of migrant families to take the pressure off border cities facing a surge in asylum seekers with no help from the federal government, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said on Tuesday.

New Mexico`s state fairgrounds will begin to house dozens of migrant families to take the pressure off border cities facing a surge in asylum seekers with no help from the federal government, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said on Tuesday. Dormitories at state-run Expo New Mexico in Albuquerque could eventually provide temporary accommodation to up to 240 people, making it one of the largest migrant shelters in the state, according to state and city authorities. Lujan Grisham has called for a humanitarian response to the rise in asylum seekers, condemning a "charade of fear-mongering" by US President Donald Trump, who has variously warned of a migrant "crisis" and "invasion" at the country`s southern border with Mexico. "The federal government has not provided shelter or timely adjudication at the border leaving migrants without any means to make arrangements to get to their sponsors or family members in the United States," according to a joint statement by the governor and Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller, both Democrats. Migrant shelters in border cities like El Paso, Texas, and Las Cruces, New Mexico, are at or near capacity as record numbers of mainly Central American families cross the border to seek asylum. The mayors of New Mexico`s three largest cities - Las Cruces, Albuquerque and Santa Fe - have offered resources to help charities and faith-based organizations care for migrants after they are dropped off by US immigration authorities. "Burqueños (Albuquerque residents) of every faith, ethnicity, and background have come together where the federal government has failed," Keller said in the statement. Las Cruces has received over 2,400 migrants since the US Border Patrol began to release them directly to shelters on April 12, said Claudia Tristan, a spokeswoman for Lujan Grisham. Expo New Mexico will absorb the cost of housing migrants and no scheduled activities will be disrupted at the area which hosts the annual state fair, Tristan said. The centre can immediately house 60 migrants and has the capacity to house up to 240 once minor repairs are undertaken to dormitories, said spokesman Wyndham Kemsley. Charities will continue to provide food and medical services to migrants, who will spend a night or two at the centre before travelling on to final destinations in the United States, the statement said. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokeswoman Leticia Zamarripa said her agency would work with El Paso`s Annunciation House migrant organization to coordinate transportation of migrants to the Expo New Mexico. US Customs and Border Protection, which runs US Border Patrol, did not respond to a request for comment.

New Mexico opens state migrant shelter, criticises federal inaction

The FBI on Saturday said it had arrested Larry Hopkins, a member of an armed group of US citizens who have been stopping migrants illegally crossing the US-Mexico border in New Mexico.

Hopkins, 69, also known as Johnny Horton, was arrested in Sunland Park, New Mexico, on a federal complaint charging him with being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said in a statement.

Hopkins had represented himself as the commander of the United Constitutional Patriots (UCP), a volunteer group camped out near Sunland Park since late February. The UCP has posted videos showing their members holding migrants, many of them Central American families with children seeking asylum, until US&nbsp;Border Patrol arrives to arrest them.

The group drew a complaint from the American Civil Liberties Union, and widespread media attention, after an April 16 video showed a group of around 300 migrants surrendering to the UCP at their camp.

New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham on Friday said citizens had no authority to arrest or detain anyone and police and justice officials were looking into the UCP’s activities.

Hector Balderas, New Mexico’s attorney general, described Hopkins as “a dangerous felon who should not have weapons around children and families.”

“Today’s arrest by the FBI indicates clearly that the rule of law should be in the hands of trained law enforcement officials, not armed vigilantes,” Balderas said in a statement.

Hopkins, of Flora Vista, New Mexico, is expected to have an initial appearance in US District Court in Las Cruces, N.M., on Monday, April 22, at 10:30 a.m. (1230 ET), the FBI said.

The FBI on Saturday said it had arrested Larry Hopkins, a member of an armed group of US citizens who have been stopping migrants illegally crossing the US-Mexico border in New Mexico.

The FBI on Saturday said it had arrested Larry Hopkins, a member of an armed group of US citizens who have been stopping migrants illegally crossing the US-Mexico border in New Mexico. Hopkins, 69, also known as Johnny Horton, was arrested in Sunland Park, New Mexico, on a federal complaint charging him with being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said in a statement. Hopkins had represented himself as the commander of the United Constitutional Patriots (UCP), a volunteer group camped out near Sunland Park since late February. The UCP has posted videos showing their members holding migrants, many of them Central American families with children seeking asylum, until US Border Patrol arrives to arrest them. The group drew a complaint from the American Civil Liberties Union, and widespread media attention, after an April 16 video showed a group of around 300 migrants surrendering to the UCP at their camp. New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham on Friday said citizens had no authority to arrest or detain anyone and police and justice officials were looking into the UCP’s activities. Hector Balderas, New Mexico’s attorney general, described Hopkins as “a dangerous felon who should not have weapons around children and families.” “Today’s arrest by the FBI indicates clearly that the rule of law should be in the hands of trained law enforcement officials, not armed vigilantes,” Balderas said in a statement. Hopkins, of Flora Vista, New Mexico, is expected to have an initial appearance in US District Court in Las Cruces, N.M., on Monday, April 22, at 10:30 a.m. (1230 ET), the FBI said.

FBI arrests member of armed group stopping migrants US-Mexico border

Mexico said on Saturday it had “deep concern” about armed groups that intimidate and extort migrants on the border, shortly after the ACLU and Democratic senators called for a probe into such citizen efforts to block migrants from crossing.

“These types of practices can drive human rights abuses of people who migrate or request asylum or refuge in the United States,” Mexico’s Foreign Relations Ministry said in a statement, referring to “militia groups” in New Mexico.

It added that patrols “on the margins” of the law create risks for the safety of migrants.

On Thursday, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico condemned the United Constitutional Patriots, which patrols the southern US&nbsp;border in New Mexico, as a “fascist militia organization” operating outside the law.

The group has posted videos showing members dressed in camouflage and armed with semi-automatic rifles holding groups of migrants, many Central American families seeking asylum, until US&nbsp;Border Patrol agents arrive.

The small volunteer group says it is helping the Border Patrol deal with a surge in undocumented migrants at the southern border. US&nbsp;President Donald Trump’s administration has toughened various policies and put pressure on Mexico in an attempt to discourage people from attempting to cross into the United States illegally.

Along with the ACLU, New Mexico Democratic senators Martin Heinrich and Tom Udall also called for an investigation into the border group.

“Threatening innocent children and families fleeing violence and seeking asylum is unacceptable and flies in the face of our values as a state and a nation,” they said in a joint statement on Twitter on Friday.

Mexico said on Saturday it had “deep concern” about armed groups that intimidate and extort migrants on the border, shortly after the ACLU and Democratic senators called for a probe into such citizen efforts to block migrants from crossing.

Mexico said on Saturday it had “deep concern” about armed groups that intimidate and extort migrants on the border, shortly after the ACLU and Democratic senators called for a probe into such citizen efforts to block migrants from crossing. “These types of practices can drive human rights abuses of people who migrate or request asylum or refuge in the United States,” Mexico’s Foreign Relations Ministry said in a statement, referring to “militia groups” in New Mexico. It added that patrols “on the margins” of the law create risks for the safety of migrants. On Thursday, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico condemned the United Constitutional Patriots, which patrols the southern US border in New Mexico, as a “fascist militia organization” operating outside the law. The group has posted videos showing members dressed in camouflage and armed with semi-automatic rifles holding groups of migrants, many Central American families seeking asylum, until US Border Patrol agents arrive. The small volunteer group says it is helping the Border Patrol deal with a surge in undocumented migrants at the southern border. US President Donald Trump’s administration has toughened various policies and put pressure on Mexico in an attempt to discourage people from attempting to cross into the United States illegally. Along with the ACLU, New Mexico Democratic senators Martin Heinrich and Tom Udall also called for an investigation into the border group. “Threatening innocent children and families fleeing violence and seeking asylum is unacceptable and flies in the face of our values as a state and a nation,” they said in a joint statement on Twitter on Friday.

Mexico warns of 'deep concern' over armed groups on US border

Pope Francis led Good Friday services dedicated to the victims of human trafficking and the plight of migrants, denouncing leaders with "armoured hearts" who exploit their plight for political gain.

Francis, marking his seventh Easter season as Roman Catholic leader, presided at a traditional Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) service at Rome's Colosseum, attended by thousands of people holding candles.

The meditations read out by speakers during the 14 "stations of the cross" which commemorate the last hours of Jesus' life were written by Sister Eugenia Bonetti, an 80-year-old Italian nun who has won multiple awards for her work with trafficked women and children.

At the end of the service, Francis read a prayer in which he spoke of the poor, the hungry, the elderly, abused children and the environment.

In it, he spoke of "the cross of migrants who find doors closed because of fear and hearts that are armoured by political calculation".

Francis has made a defence of migrants a key feature of his pontificate and has clashed over the immigration with politicians such as US&nbsp;President Donald Trump and Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Salvini who leads the anti-immigrant League party and has closed Italy's ports to rescue ships operated by charities.

Each year, the Pope entrusts the writing of the meditations to a different person or group. Bonetti's were among the most graphic and emotional ever read at the service.

Francis listened intently as three speakers read Bonetti's meditations about migrants being set on fire, dying in the desert or drowning at sea and ending up in nameless coffins.

One of Bonetti's meditations read:

"Let us think of all those children in various parts of the world who cannot go to school but are instead exploited in mines, fields and fisheries, bought and sold by human traffickers for organ harvesting, used and abused on our streets by many, including Christians ...,"

She wrote of seeing "men in luxury cars lined up to exploit" young woman forced into prostitution shortly after they arrive in Italy, where many African migrants wash up, hoping for a fresh start only to be snared by traffickers and pimps.

"Men, women and children are bought and sold like slaves by the new traders in human lives," she wrote, "How many people are growing rich by devouring the flesh and blood of the poor?"

The 82-year-old leader of the world's 1.3 billion Roman Catholics will lead an Easter vigil service on Saturday night and on Easter Sunday will read the traditional "Urbi et Orbi" (To The City and The World) message.

Pope Francis led Good Friday services dedicated to the victims of human trafficking and the plight of migrants, denouncing leaders with "armoured hearts" who exploit their plight for political gain.

Pope Francis led Good Friday services dedicated to the victims of human trafficking and the plight of migrants, denouncing leaders with "armoured hearts" who exploit their plight for political gain. Francis, marking his seventh Easter season as Roman Catholic leader, presided at a traditional Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) service at Rome's Colosseum, attended by thousands of people holding candles. The meditations read out by speakers during the 14 "stations of the cross" which commemorate the last hours of Jesus' life were written by Sister Eugenia Bonetti, an 80-year-old Italian nun who has won multiple awards for her work with trafficked women and children. At the end of the service, Francis read a prayer in which he spoke of the poor, the hungry, the elderly, abused children and the environment. In it, he spoke of "the cross of migrants who find doors closed because of fear and hearts that are armoured by political calculation". Francis has made a defence of migrants a key feature of his pontificate and has clashed over the immigration with politicians such as US President Donald Trump and Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Salvini who leads the anti-immigrant League party and has closed Italy's ports to rescue ships operated by charities. Each year, the Pope entrusts the writing of the meditations to a different person or group. Bonetti's were among the most graphic and emotional ever read at the service. Francis listened intently as three speakers read Bonetti's meditations about migrants being set on fire, dying in the desert or drowning at sea and ending up in nameless coffins. One of Bonetti's meditations read: "Let us think of all those children in various parts of the world who cannot go to school but are instead exploited in mines, fields and fisheries, bought and sold by human traffickers for organ harvesting, used and abused on our streets by many, including Christians ...," She wrote of seeing "men in luxury cars lined up to exploit" young woman forced into prostitution shortly after they arrive in Italy, where many African migrants wash up, hoping for a fresh start only to be snared by traffickers and pimps. "Men, women and children are bought and sold like slaves by the new traders in human lives," she wrote, "How many people are growing rich by devouring the flesh and blood of the poor?" The 82-year-old leader of the world's 1.3 billion Roman Catholics will lead an Easter vigil service on Saturday night and on Easter Sunday will read the traditional "Urbi et Orbi" (To The City and The World) message.

On Good Friday, pope hears harrowing stories of human trafficking

Grappling with a ballooning number of <a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wionews.com/world/hundreds-of-migrants-form-caravan-in-honduras-to-head-for-the-us-209346&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=0ahUKEwihrqzl2NvhAhVP7HMBHQjuCJMQFggFMAA&amp;client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;usg=AOvVaw22mt-osXCI2yOFh3q0ja7P">migrants at the US</a> southern border, President<a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wionews.com/world/after-trump-floats-idea-white-house-studying-plan-to-send-migrants-to-sanctuary-cities-210417&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=0ahUKEwihrqzl2NvhAhVP7HMBHQjuCJMQFggOMAM&amp;client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;usg=AOvVaw1Zei5TQcCQw_fRP0j8i5eT"> Donald Trump</a> has suggested increasingly bold steps to fulfil his signature campaign pledge to stem illegal immigration.&nbsp;

Yet many of his administration`s ideas have been hindered by legal, practical and political obstacles.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, the flow of migrants seeking asylum or a better life in the United States continues to swell.

By March, the number of illegal entrants into the country had surged to the highest level in more than a decade.&nbsp;

On Wednesday, the acting director of the US Department of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan visited the Texas border to underscore the administration`s concerns about a growing crisis.&nbsp;

The US Customs and Border Protection confirmed Thursday that the agency would set up two temporary tent facilities in Texas to process migrants, each with a capacity to hold up to 500 people.

Such camps have been criticized by Congress members for holding migrants too long and not providing adequate places to sleep or shower.&nbsp;

The president, whose statements and tweets suggest a rising level of frustration, recently cleaned house at the Department of Homeland Security, firing Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and several other high-ranking staff. He has vowed to move in a "tougher direction."&nbsp;

But a look at several significant Trump Administration ideas or policies shows the difficulty the president faces in trying to reverse the tide of migration, which today is largely driven by poverty, corruption, crime and other factors in Central America.

Some examples of administration proposals or policies that have run, or may run, into trouble:

Detain asylum seekers indefinitely

US Attorney General William Barr on Tuesday issued a ruling that allows asylum seekers who cross the border illegally to be held without bond as they challenge their deportation – a decision affecting perhaps tens of thousands of migrants. It was the latest move by top justice officials seeking to reshape legal precedent in the country`s US immigration courts.

Rights groups have already threatened to sue over the measure - which goes into effect in 90 days - and as a practical matter, additional detention space would be needed, requiring funding from Congress. Until that happens, many migrants are likely to continue to be released with an order to appear in court.&nbsp;

Send immigrants to sanctuary cities

Earlier this month, Trump proposed sending "an unlimited supply" of immigrants who are fighting deportation to so-called sanctuaries - the hundreds of cities, counties and states where law enforcement limits its cooperation with Trump`s crackdown on immigrants living in the country illegally.

Immigration experts said it would be costly to transport migrants from the border and would require shifting funds from Border Patrol and other operations.

In addition, the migrants would be free to move elsewhere once released.&nbsp;

Close the border with Mexico

The administration recently backed off a threat to shut the southern border, one of the busiest in the world, amid opposition from Democrats as well as often Republican-friendly business groups. The US Chamber of Commerce called the idea an "economic calamity."&nbsp;

Make asylum seekers wait in Mexico

One of the boldest proposals by the Trump administration has been to tap a little-used clause in immigration law to send hundreds of migrants who ask for asylum in the United States back to border towns in Mexico to wait months - or potentially years - for their cases to be resolved in US courts.

Local Mexican officials say their towns are already overwhelmed with migrants who have nowhere to live and few job prospects, while immigration advocates say those who are stuck in Mexico often have trouble finding lawyers and receiving proper notice for their US hearings.

A federal judge ordered a halt to the policy but an appeals court said it could continue while the administration appeals.

Detain migrant children

The current wave of migrants includes many more families, as opposed to the single men who flocked north in the past.

That has caused the administration to take another look at a 1997 agreement, known as the Flores settlement, that strictly limits the detention of children.

The administration has said repeatedly that t wants to scrap the legal deal and propose new regulations.

It is unclear where - and with what funding - the government would detain the youngsters. Legal challenges to this proposal have been in the works from the moment it was announced.&nbsp;

Grappling with a ballooning number of migrants at the US southern border, President Donald Trump has suggested increasingly bold steps to fulfil his signature campaign pledge to stem illegal immigration.

Grappling with a ballooning number of migrants at the US southern border, President Donald Trump has suggested increasingly bold steps to fulfil his signature campaign pledge to stem illegal immigration. Yet many of his administration`s ideas have been hindered by legal, practical and political obstacles. Meanwhile, the flow of migrants seeking asylum or a better life in the United States continues to swell. By March, the number of illegal entrants into the country had surged to the highest level in more than a decade. On Wednesday, the acting director of the US Department of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan visited the Texas border to underscore the administration`s concerns about a growing crisis. The US Customs and Border Protection confirmed Thursday that the agency would set up two temporary tent facilities in Texas to process migrants, each with a capacity to hold up to 500 people. Such camps have been criticized by Congress members for holding migrants too long and not providing adequate places to sleep or shower. The president, whose statements and tweets suggest a rising level of frustration, recently cleaned house at the Department of Homeland Security, firing Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and several other high-ranking staff. He has vowed to move in a "tougher direction." But a look at several significant Trump Administration ideas or policies shows the difficulty the president faces in trying to reverse the tide of migration, which today is largely driven by poverty, corruption, crime and other factors in Central America. Some examples of administration proposals or policies that have run, or may run, into trouble: Detain asylum seekers indefinitely US Attorney General William Barr on Tuesday issued a ruling that allows asylum seekers who cross the border illegally to be held without bond as they challenge their deportation – a decision affecting perhaps tens of thousands of migrants. It was the latest move by top justice officials seeking to reshape legal precedent in the country`s US immigration courts. Rights groups have already threatened to sue over the measure - which goes into effect in 90 days - and as a practical matter, additional detention space would be needed, requiring funding from Congress. Until that happens, many migrants are likely to continue to be released with an order to appear in court. Send immigrants to sanctuary cities Earlier this month, Trump proposed sending "an unlimited supply" of immigrants who are fighting deportation to so-called sanctuaries - the hundreds of cities, counties and states where law enforcement limits its cooperation with Trump`s crackdown on immigrants living in the country illegally. Immigration experts said it would be costly to transport migrants from the border and would require shifting funds from Border Patrol and other operations. In addition, the migrants would be free to move elsewhere once released. Close the border with Mexico The administration recently backed off a threat to shut the southern border, one of the busiest in the world, amid opposition from Democrats as well as often Republican-friendly business groups. The US Chamber of Commerce called the idea an "economic calamity." Make asylum seekers wait in Mexico One of the boldest proposals by the Trump administration has been to tap a little-used clause in immigration law to send hundreds of migrants who ask for asylum in the United States back to border towns in Mexico to wait months - or potentially years - for their cases to be resolved in US courts. Local Mexican officials say their towns are already overwhelmed with migrants who have nowhere to live and few job prospects, while immigration advocates say those who are stuck in Mexico often have trouble finding lawyers and receiving proper notice for their US hearings. A federal judge ordered a halt to the policy but an appeals court said it could continue while the administration appeals. Detain migrant children The current wave of migrants includes many more families, as opposed to the single men who flocked north in the past. That has caused the administration to take another look at a 1997 agreement, known as the Flores settlement, that strictly limits the detention of children. The administration has said repeatedly that t wants to scrap the legal deal and propose new regulations. It is unclear where - and with what funding - the government would detain the youngsters. Legal challenges to this proposal have been in the works from the moment it was announced.

Explainer: Five ways Trump's moves to stem border surge have hit hurdles

Amid pressure from Washington, Mexico is back-pedalling on promises of better treatment for Central American migrants, leaving hundreds stranded in unsanitary camps near its southern border and allegations of irregular detentions.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador promised more humane treatment for Central American migrants when he took office in December. His left-leaning government issued thousands of year-long humanitarian visas in January, giving migrants legal access to jobs and the right to travel to the United States.

However, caught off guard by a surge in arrivals, Lopez Obrador's administration is resorting to old tactics based on tough law enforcement.

Mexico has halted the liberal visa policy and ramped up detentions of migrants heading north, government data shows, following criticism from US President Donald Trump of a jump in the number of Central American asylum seekers reaching the US&nbsp;border in February.

Trump, who is expected to make border security central to his 2020 re-election bid, has vowed to limit trade with Mexico if it does not help slow immigration.

While Lopez Obrador's government has said it will not react to "threats", sources familiar with Mexican policy, who asked not to be identified, said near-daily US government pressure had led the interior and foreign ministries to push the National Migration Institute (INM) for tougher action.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Unreleased INM data, reviewed by Reuters, showed that it detained 12,746 undocumented migrants for registration in March, up by nearly one-third from February and two-thirds from January.

The agency also stopped processing new applications for humanitarian visas on Jan. 28, after issuing some 13,000 - mostly to Central Americans arriving that month in the southern border state of Chiapas, the site of most migrant arrivals.

A few thousand more visas were issued in February, but none since, said an INM official in Mexico City, who was not officially authorized to speak to the media and asked to remain anonymous.

INM said in a statement earlier this month it remained open to issuing humanitarian visas in Chiapas, with priority given to women, children and the elderly.

In Chiapas, the INM's decision to close its main office in the border city of Tapachula a month ago has forced hundreds of migrants to travel 65 miles (105 km) north to the smaller town of Mapastepec, where they have languished in sweltering temperatures, hoping for humanitarian visas.

"It's madness that they're making us wait so long. For what? For nothing!" said Daisy Maldonado, a 26-year-old from Honduras, camping in a field in Mapastepec opposite a sports stadium.

Hundreds of bedraggled men, women and children have been sheltering for nearly three weeks inside the stadium, as migration officials registered their identities while neglecting the group camped over the road, rights groups and migrants said.

Without water, medical help or government attention, Maldonado's group was dependent on scant handouts from locals, they said. Maldonado's daughter, Marisol, 5, wailed with hunger beside her, in a bivouac she had built from dried palm branches.

A coalition of over a dozen human rights and humanitarian aid groups operating in Chiapas has called the buildup of stranded migrants a "humanitarian crisis," and said the confusion over visas was worsening the plight of migrants.

"The government is responding with practices and repressive methods similar to the previous administration in terms of control and deportation, but in a way that's even more disorderly," said Salva Lacruz, a coordinator at Fray Matias de Cordova, a migrant group that operates in Chiapas. "In some ways, it's worse."

INM Commissioner Tonatiuh Guillén López said in a recent interview his agency was taking a "stricter" approach in southern Mexico because of the influx of migrants in Chiapas. However, he denied that was a response to US pressure and said Mexico was pressing ahead with more humane migration policies.

'HUMANITARIAN CRISIS'

INM officials said they closed the main regional office in Tapachula on March 15 after Cuban migrants stormed the premises, enraged that they were not seeing faster results.

Rights groups and migrants, however, dispute this.

Nonetheless, the closure has created a bottleneck of visa applicants, hundreds of whom headed north to Mapastepec.

On Saturday, INM suddenly halted registration at the stadium in Mapastepec and said migrants would have to wait at least a month longer.

INM said work had been stopped after some migrants had caused a disturbance requiring police to intervene and registration would continue at another site, without providing details.

Even those who had been registered inside the stadium had been given no indication from INM officials if or when they would receive humanitarian visas almost two weeks after being processed, said Silvia Rodriguez, 26, a Honduran citizen.

On Wednesday, the INM said it would not issue any humanitarian visas in Mapastepec, but migrants would instead be able to request a seven-day permit to visit Mexico's southern border states, which would not allow them to journey northward.

It also said migrants would be notified of that once an evaluation of the registrants was completed.

Despite the uncertainty, many migrants preferred to wait to request legal status before continuing their journey in caravans. Migrants who travel alone and without papers in Mexico are frequent prey for kidnappers and smugglers, in addition to risking detention or extortion by police.

Erick Morazan, a 28-year-old from Honduras, said he traveled to Mapastepec by night with a group of other migrants to avoid sweeps by immigration officials, in what he called a "caravan of zombies."

"Migration officials are grabbing us like pigs," said Morazan, travelling with two children.

In an effort to stem the build up of migrants in Chiapas, INM said this month that citizens of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala will be able to register for the visas through Mexican consulates in their home countries from late May.

DETENTION OVERCROWDING

While INM closed its registration offices in Tapachula, a detention centre at the site remains open. An increase in detentions in the border area means the site is crammed with 1,700 people, the rights collective said in its report.

That's about double its capacity and double the usual number held there, according to migrant group Fray Matias, which monitors the centre.

The collective reported black eyes and bruised bodies among detainees it said were the result of beatings by police who entered the centre to control a disturbance last week. Reuters was not able to independently verify this.

Mexican law enforcement representatives did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

Lacruz of Fray Matias said at least 30 migrants had been irregularly detained at the Tapachula facility despite having applied for asylum with the Mexican Refugee Help Commission (COMAR), in contravention of Mexican law.

INM did not respond to requests for comment about the allegations of overcrowding and irregular detentions.

The institute says that migrants held in its facilities are not detained but are simply being held for processing, though rights groups and migrants say they are not free to leave, often for days or weeks.

Many undocumented migrants are also deported after processing in the centres. Mexico flew about 60 Cubans back to the island this month and sent 204 Hondurans home on Saturday.

Richard Pioenza, a US citizen originally from Cuba, said his wife Yildiz Gomez had been held more than 20 days in the centre despite having papers showing she had applied for asylum.

"She's inside. She's not eating well," Pioenza said. "She's sleeping on the floor."

Reuters was unable to contact Gomez directly.

Pioenza said his wife applied for refugee status after arriving in Mexico in March to ease her passage to the US&nbsp;border where she was planning to apply for asylum from political repression in Cuba.

After a request from Reuters for verification on Gomez and five other cases of suspected irregular detentions, the Mexican refugee agency said on Monday it would send a team to the centre.

Amid pressure from Washington, Mexico is back-pedalling on promises of better treatment for Central American migrants, leaving hundreds stranded in unsanitary camps near its southern border and allegations of irregular detentions.

Amid pressure from Washington, Mexico is back-pedalling on promises of better treatment for Central American migrants, leaving hundreds stranded in unsanitary camps near its southern border and allegations of irregular detentions. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador promised more humane treatment for Central American migrants when he took office in December. His left-leaning government issued thousands of year-long humanitarian visas in January, giving migrants legal access to jobs and the right to travel to the United States. However, caught off guard by a surge in arrivals, Lopez Obrador's administration is resorting to old tactics based on tough law enforcement. Mexico has halted the liberal visa policy and ramped up detentions of migrants heading north, government data shows, following criticism from US President Donald Trump of a jump in the number of Central American asylum seekers reaching the US border in February. Trump, who is expected to make border security central to his 2020 re-election bid, has vowed to limit trade with Mexico if it does not help slow immigration. While Lopez Obrador's government has said it will not react to "threats", sources familiar with Mexican policy, who asked not to be identified, said near-daily US government pressure had led the interior and foreign ministries to push the National Migration Institute (INM) for tougher action. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Unreleased INM data, reviewed by Reuters, showed that it detained 12,746 undocumented migrants for registration in March, up by nearly one-third from February and two-thirds from January. The agency also stopped processing new applications for humanitarian visas on Jan. 28, after issuing some 13,000 - mostly to Central Americans arriving that month in the southern border state of Chiapas, the site of most migrant arrivals. A few thousand more visas were issued in February, but none since, said an INM official in Mexico City, who was not officially authorized to speak to the media and asked to remain anonymous. INM said in a statement earlier this month it remained open to issuing humanitarian visas in Chiapas, with priority given to women, children and the elderly. In Chiapas, the INM's decision to close its main office in the border city of Tapachula a month ago has forced hundreds of migrants to travel 65 miles (105 km) north to the smaller town of Mapastepec, where they have languished in sweltering temperatures, hoping for humanitarian visas. "It's madness that they're making us wait so long. For what? For nothing!" said Daisy Maldonado, a 26-year-old from Honduras, camping in a field in Mapastepec opposite a sports stadium. Hundreds of bedraggled men, women and children have been sheltering for nearly three weeks inside the stadium, as migration officials registered their identities while neglecting the group camped over the road, rights groups and migrants said. Without water, medical help or government attention, Maldonado's group was dependent on scant handouts from locals, they said. Maldonado's daughter, Marisol, 5, wailed with hunger beside her, in a bivouac she had built from dried palm branches. A coalition of over a dozen human rights and humanitarian aid groups operating in Chiapas has called the buildup of stranded migrants a "humanitarian crisis," and said the confusion over visas was worsening the plight of migrants. "The government is responding with practices and repressive methods similar to the previous administration in terms of control and deportation, but in a way that's even more disorderly," said Salva Lacruz, a coordinator at Fray Matias de Cordova, a migrant group that operates in Chiapas. "In some ways, it's worse." INM Commissioner Tonatiuh Guillén López said in a recent interview his agency was taking a "stricter" approach in southern Mexico because of the influx of migrants in Chiapas. However, he denied that was a response to US pressure and said Mexico was pressing ahead with more humane migration policies. 'HUMANITARIAN CRISIS' INM officials said they closed the main regional office in Tapachula on March 15 after Cuban migrants stormed the premises, enraged that they were not seeing faster results. Rights groups and migrants, however, dispute this. Nonetheless, the closure has created a bottleneck of visa applicants, hundreds of whom headed north to Mapastepec. On Saturday, INM suddenly halted registration at the stadium in Mapastepec and said migrants would have to wait at least a month longer. INM said work had been stopped after some migrants had caused a disturbance requiring police to intervene and registration would continue at another site, without providing details. Even those who had been registered inside the stadium had been given no indication from INM officials if or when they would receive humanitarian visas almost two weeks after being processed, said Silvia Rodriguez, 26, a Honduran citizen. On Wednesday, the INM said it would not issue any humanitarian visas in Mapastepec, but migrants would instead be able to request a seven-day permit to visit Mexico's southern border states, which would not allow them to journey northward. It also said migrants would be notified of that once an evaluation of the registrants was completed. Despite the uncertainty, many migrants preferred to wait to request legal status before continuing their journey in caravans. Migrants who travel alone and without papers in Mexico are frequent prey for kidnappers and smugglers, in addition to risking detention or extortion by police. Erick Morazan, a 28-year-old from Honduras, said he traveled to Mapastepec by night with a group of other migrants to avoid sweeps by immigration officials, in what he called a "caravan of zombies." "Migration officials are grabbing us like pigs," said Morazan, travelling with two children. In an effort to stem the build up of migrants in Chiapas, INM said this month that citizens of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala will be able to register for the visas through Mexican consulates in their home countries from late May. DETENTION OVERCROWDING While INM closed its registration offices in Tapachula, a detention centre at the site remains open. An increase in detentions in the border area means the site is crammed with 1,700 people, the rights collective said in its report. That's about double its capacity and double the usual number held there, according to migrant group Fray Matias, which monitors the centre. The collective reported black eyes and bruised bodies among detainees it said were the result of beatings by police who entered the centre to control a disturbance last week. Reuters was not able to independently verify this. Mexican law enforcement representatives did not immediately reply to requests for comment. Lacruz of Fray Matias said at least 30 migrants had been irregularly detained at the Tapachula facility despite having applied for asylum with the Mexican Refugee Help Commission (COMAR), in contravention of Mexican law. INM did not respond to requests for comment about the allegations of overcrowding and irregular detentions. The institute says that migrants held in its facilities are not detained but are simply being held for processing, though rights groups and migrants say they are not free to leave, often for days or weeks. Many undocumented migrants are also deported after processing in the centres. Mexico flew about 60 Cubans back to the island this month and sent 204 Hondurans home on Saturday. Richard Pioenza, a US citizen originally from Cuba, said his wife Yildiz Gomez had been held more than 20 days in the centre despite having papers showing she had applied for asylum. "She's inside. She's not eating well," Pioenza said. "She's sleeping on the floor." Reuters was unable to contact Gomez directly. Pioenza said his wife applied for refugee status after arriving in Mexico in March to ease her passage to the US border where she was planning to apply for asylum from political repression in Cuba. After a request from Reuters for verification on Gomez and five other cases of suspected irregular detentions, the Mexican refugee agency said on Monday it would send a team to the centre.

Migrant camps overflow as Mexico cracks down after Trump threats

Almost 1,000 people gathered Tuesday night in the town of San Pedro Sula in northern Honduras to form a new caravan to reach the United States, police said.

"There are more than 800, almost a thousand," a police official told AFP, with the Red Cross reporting the same number.

The caravan, which followed a call on social media, took the authorities by surprise after similar appeals since February failed to muster numbers.

Many families with children were among those gathered, and some have already started their journeys in crowded minibuses.

Alexis Perez, 27, said,&nbsp;"We are done with this government, there is no work."

Since October 13, when the first caravan of 2,000 set off, three other similar convoys of migrants have left Honduras for the US in search of work or fleeing drug-traffickers.

The groups are a target of President Donald Trump, who has vowed to tighten migration policy and build a wall to stop them from entering the United States through Mexico.

Several thousand Central Americans have trekked across Mexico by caravan since last year, fleeing poverty and violence in their home countries.

They travel en masse in hopes of finding safety in numbers against Mexican gangs that regularly extort, kidnap and kill migrants, sometimes in collusion with local authorities.

 
&nbsp;

Almost 1,000 people gathered Tuesday night in the town of San Pedro Sula in northern Honduras to form a new caravan to reach the United States, police said. "There are more than 800, almost a thousand," a police official told AFP, with the Red Cross reporting the same number.

Almost 1,000 people gathered Tuesday night in the town of San Pedro Sula in northern Honduras to form a new caravan to reach the United States, police said. "There are more than 800, almost a thousand," a police official told AFP, with the Red Cross reporting the same number. The caravan, which followed a call on social media, took the authorities by surprise after similar appeals since February failed to muster numbers. Many families with children were among those gathered, and some have already started their journeys in crowded minibuses. Alexis Perez, 27, said, "We are done with this government, there is no work." Since October 13, when the first caravan of 2,000 set off, three other similar convoys of migrants have left Honduras for the US in search of work or fleeing drug-traffickers. The groups are a target of President Donald Trump, who has vowed to tighten migration policy and build a wall to stop them from entering the United States through Mexico. Several thousand Central Americans have trekked across Mexico by caravan since last year, fleeing poverty and violence in their home countries. They travel en masse in hopes of finding safety in numbers against Mexican gangs that regularly extort, kidnap and kill migrants, sometimes in collusion with local authorities.

Hundreds of migrants form caravan in Honduras to head for the US

Migrants on board the German charity ship Sea-Eye begged the European Union for help on Tuesday evening (April 9) after being left stranded out at sea for over seven days.

"Please find a way to help us" migrant on stranded Sea-Eye vessel begs EU

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