The US anticipates a rise in arrivals throughout its southern border with Mexico as COVID-19 restrictions expire.
The US has despatched its first deportation flight to Cuba since 2020, months after the island nation agreed — for the primary time because the COVID-19 pandemic — to just accept flights carrying Cubans caught on the US-Mexico border.
“On April 24, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement resumed regular removals processing for Cuban nationals who’ve obtained remaining orders of elimination,” a Division of Homeland Safety (DHS) spokesperson stated in an emailed assertion.
The Cuban authorities confirmed the flight’s arrival, saying on Twitter it included 40 Cubans intercepted in boats and 83 detained on the US-Mexico border.
Reuters first reported late final yr that Cuba agreed to provide US authorities a brand new however restricted instrument to discourage document numbers of Cuban border crossers.
After US President Joe Biden adopted extra restrictive border safety measures in January, the variety of Cubans and different asylum seekers and migrants caught on the border plummeted.
Nevertheless the Biden administration is getting ready for a potential rise in unlawful crossings with COVID restrictions on the US-Mexico border set to raise on Could 11. The administration will say extra about its preparations this week, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas informed reporters on Thursday.
US and Cuban officers mentioned migration points earlier this month because the Biden administration braced for the top of COVID-era border restrictions which have blocked Cubans in current months from crossing into the USA from Mexico.
The US embassy in Havana resumed full immigrant visa processing and consular providers in January for the primary time since 2017, in a bid to stem document numbers of Cubans making an attempt to enter the USA from Mexico.
“The US continues to encourage Cubans to make use of lawful processes,” the DHS spokesperson stated on Monday.
The Biden administration in January started expelling Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans crossing the US-Mexico border below restrictions often called Title 42, whereas additionally opening new authorized pathways for these teams.
