Fear of an influx of migrants at the US-Mexico border. Before lifting a health measure that had blocked access to the country since the beginning of the pandemic, the United States deployed more than 24,000 agents on Wednesday and adopted new restrictions on the right to asylum. Internal Security Minister Alejandro Mayorkas acknowledged that it was possible that "the coming days and weeks" would be "very difficult". He said authorities were already seeing "a high number of arrivals in some areas."

The day before, Democratic President Joe Biden had gone so far as to admit that the situation would be "chaotic" when the so-called "Title 42" device expires, Thursday at 23:59 p.m. Washington time. This rule, which was supposed to limit the spread of Covid-19, gave the US authorities the possibility to immediately turn back all migrants who entered the country, including asylum seekers. In three years, it has been used 2.8 million times.

24,000 additional officers and law enforcement

As it approaches, border cities such as Brownsville, Laredo and El Paso have seen the arrival of many candidates for exile, mainly from Latin America but also from China, Russia and Turkey. In El Paso, hundreds of people are sleeping on the streets. Mayor Oscar Leeser expects a wave of "12,000 to 15,000 people" by the weekend.

To help local authorities, the government announced Wednesday the deployment of "more than 24,000 agents and law enforcement, as well as more than 1,100 coordinators" of the border police. This is without counting the 1,500 soldiers sent by the Ministry of Defense, in reinforcement of the 2,500 already on the spot.

New restrictions

At the same time, the Ministries of Justice and Homeland Security finalised new restrictions on the right to asylum. Announced in February, they have been the subject of a mandatory consultation procedure and will enter into force on Thursday evening. Before arriving at the border, asylum seekers, with the exception of unaccompanied minors, must now have obtained an appointment on a telephone application set up by border guards, or have been refused asylum in one of the countries crossed during their migratory journey. Otherwise, their request will be presumed illegitimate and they may be subject to an expedited deportation procedure, banning them from entering the United States for five years.

The United States plans to increase repatriation flights, which will double or triple for some destinations. Some 7,000 additional places will be created in detention centres, so that migrants do not disappear in the country while waiting for their cases to be examined. To encourage legal immigration channels, Washington has planned to eventually open a hundred "regional management centers", located outside the country, and where the files of candidates for emigration will be studied. The first are planned in Colombia and Guatemala.

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