Watch: Crowds of migrants try to fight US-Mexico border | World news
Several videos have surfaced on the internet which allegedly show hundreds of migrants forcing their way into the United States through the Mexican border. The chaos was sparked by a rumor that the border had been opened because of the supposed “day of immigrants,” AP reported.
On Sunday, the largest crowd of Venezuelans filled the Paso Del Norte bridge that connects Mexico’s Ciudad Juarez to El Paso, Texas.
Asylum seekers in the US have been frustrated by long delays in the process, which is now facilitated by a new mobile application called Customs and Border Protection (CBP One) released by the Biden administration.
Footage shared widely on social media showed adults, women and children rushing to the border with chants of ‘to the USA’. The crowd was blocked by barbed wire, armed forces and rockets, Fox News reported. According to Reuters images, some migrants threw an orange, plastic barrier at the US border, which was met with pepper spray attacks.
However, after unsuccessful attempts to cross the border, the distraught group went to the banks of the Rio Grande where they were monitored by US immigration officials stationed on the other side.
Also read: US to limit asylum to immigrants who pass through third countries
Appointments must now be made through the app as asylum seekers need to apply before rather than when they arrive.
“Don’t just show up at the border,” President Joe Biden said in a speech while trying to focus on the large number of immigrants who are opting for the dangerous routes of illegal entry set up by immigrants. While taking office, Biden has promised asylum to asylum seekers and to end harsher detention laws for illegal immigrants.
About 200,000 people try to cross the border from Mexico to the US every month. Poverty and violence are the main factors that cause mass migration from Central and South America.
