Mexican police push back hundreds of US-bound migrants

By Laura Gamba

BOGOTA, Colombia (AA) - Immigration authorities in northern Mexico attempted to stop hundreds of migrants, mainly from Venezuela, who used inflatable rubber mattresses and makeshift rafts to cross the Rio Grande River into the United States.

The group of migrants planned on leaving the city of Matamoros in Mexico and entering Brownsville, Texas to surrender themselves to the border patrol.

After several attempts, Mexican immigration authorities found themselves outnumbered and did little to stop the migrants from passing.

Thousands of migrants from Venezuela, Haiti and Central America are camping in the Matamoros border area expecting to cross to file an asylum claim in the US. They claim they undertake the dangerous journey because they are fleeing violence, poverty and political instability in their countries.

For several weeks, migrants who are camping on the banks of the Rio Grande have been entering the river to reach US territory in an effort to speed up their entry into that country and end their wait in Mexico. An estimated 3,500 migrants are stranded in Matamoros.

Migrant numbers at the US-Mexico border have been on the rise since last year. Through its official Facebook page, the US Border Patrol reported that in the last 24 hours, they had intercepted 1,600 migrants who entered the country via the Rio Grande River, which has claimed the lives of several people.

The Biden administration began testing an expedited asylum screening process by which migrants who enter the country illegally will be screened by asylum officers while in the custody of US Customs and Border Protection.